%. 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


\^t 


THE 


PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 


AND 


ITS    REQUIREMENTS 


OR 


THE  BENEFICENCE  OF  NATURE'S  LAWS 


BY 

LUCIE  BECKHAM  STEVENS 


LOS  ANGELES,  CAL. 
CONCORD    PUBLISHING    COMPANY 

3311  WEST  TEMPLE  5TREET 


Entered,  according  to  act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1907, 

By  LuciE  Beckhaa\  Stevens, 

In  tiie  office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  Washington.  D.  C. 


THE  CAXTON   PRESS,   LOS  ANGELES.   CAL. 


6,3^ 


WITH 

LOVE  AND  GRATITUDE,  THIS  BOOK  IS  HEREWITH 

DEDICATED  TO 

JOSEPHINE  M.  HOLMES, 

MY  TEACHER,  GUIDE  AND  FRIEND.     ALL  HONOR  BE 
UNTO  HER  NAME. 


6006GG 

T  TPPAT?V 


PREFACE 


THE  subject  matter  of  this  book  is  treated  with 
special  reference  to  clearness  and  forcefulness  in 
presenting  the  facts  with  which  we  purpose  to  impress 
the  reader.  It  is  not  written  for  entertainment;  and 
we  have  tried  to  handle  it  in  such  a  way  that  he  who 
begins  it  for  pastime  will  continue  it  because  he  finds 
that  which  is  of  practical  value  to  his  own  life. 

We  wish  the  book  to  be  instructive,  and  therefore 
have  not  hesitated  to  say  the  same  thing  in  many  ways, 
and  to  repeat  whenever  we  have  found  it  necessary  to 
accentuate  a  point.  We  hope  that  all  the  salient  facts 
have  been  shown  from  a  sufficient  number  of  viewpoints 
to  free  them  from  all  doubt  as  to  their  exact  meaning 
and  application,  and  that  each  fact  thus  presented  will 
leave  an  indelible  impression  on  the  mind  of  the  reader. 
If  we  have  succeeded  in  doing  these  things  we  are  con- 
tent, even  though  we  have  approached  redundancy  to 
further  this  end.  We  have,  so  far  as  possible,  constructed 
each  sentence  to  contain  an  essential  statement  relative 
to  some  vital  fact,  and  have  taken  the  liberty  to  address 
the  reader  in  the  second  person  with  the  purpose  of  still 
further  making  a  mental  impact  that  he  will  be  unable 
to  forget. 

We  have  herein  dealt  with  the  fundamental  principles 


VI  PREFACE 

of  life,  which  are  true  and  unchanging  throughout  all 
time;  but  we  have  not  told  the  whole  truth.  We  have 
referred  to  some  things  which  we  have  not  explained, 
and  which  may  give  rise  to  interrogation.  It  is  our 
present  purpose  to  write  another  book,  dealing  with 
subject  matter  less  familiar  but  equally  important  to  the 
world  at  large,  and  to  which  this  work  forms  a  sort  of 
prologue. 

We  have  but  one  object,  and  that  is  to  help  the  indi- 
vidual build  a  nobler  character,  to  live  a  better  and  hap- 
pier life,  and  to  save  himself  from  the  destruction 
imminent  under  present  conditions.  In  the  degree 
that  we  accomplish  this  purpose  is  our  work  a  success. 
Whether  this  book  receives  blame  or  praise  does  not 
signify— how  many  people  begin,  by  its  light,  to  disen- 
tangle their  natures  and  environment  is  of  the  utmost 
importance. 

Having  done  our  best  to  present  the  principles  which 
insure  progression— a  higher  individuality  and  a  larger 
and  more  beautiful  life— our  responsibility  ends— the 
reader's  begins.  That  benefits  will  be  received,  accord- 
ing to  the  comprehension  and  application  of  these  prin- 
ciples, is  beyond  question  ;  and  if  each  reader  lives  the 
life  herein  recommended  with  the  same  earnestness  with 
which  we  have  endeavored  to  portray  its  precepts  this 
work  will  bear  much  fruit. 

May  it  prove  an  inspiration  and  a  practical  help  to 
suffering  humanity. 

The  Author. 


CONTENTS 


iNSTKUCTION  ?AGE 

Introduction ix 

I  Earth  Planes 1 

II  The  Value,  Use  and  Benefits  of 

THE  Physical  Organism 7 

III  The  Senses  14 

IV  Mind     23 

V  The  Spirit   32 

VI  Reason   39 

VII  Ambition 42 

VIII  Pride   44 

IX  Vanity 53 

X  Covetousness  59 

XI  Envy  65 

XII  Jealousy    72 

XIII  Suspicion    79 

XIV  Discontent  81 

XV  Fault-finding    91 

XVI  Fear  and  Anxiety    93 

XVII  Irritability,    Touchiness,    Anger, 

Hatred  and  Revenge  97 

XVIII  Injurious     Criticism,     Condemna- 

tion, Gossip  and  Slander 103 

XIX  Carelessness,  Recklessness, 

AND   DESTRUCTIVENESS 110 

XX  Non-interference  114 

XXI  Duty 118 


vni 


CONTENTS 


Instruction  Page 

XXII  Inquisitiveness,    Curiosity    and 

Gaining  Useless  Knowledge  ...  124 

XXIII  Wrong  Desires,  Indulgence, 

Habits  and  Passions 129 

XXIV  Gluttony  and  Sloth   134 

XXV  Arguments  and  Contentions  141 

XXVI  Deceit  and  Hypocrisy 148 

XXVII  Sadness,    Melancholy    and 

Peevishness   152 

XXVIII  Past  and  Future  159 

XXIX  Suicide    164 

XXX  Adultery     169 

XXXI  Summary  Remarks    172 

XXXII  Aspiration      175 

XXXIII  Hope    • 181 

XXXIV  Patience  and  Endurance    185 

XXXV  Forbearance  and  Forgiveness  ....  188 

XXXVI  Generosity,     Charity    and 

Goodwill     192 

XXXVII  Meekness,   Submissiveness  and 

Obedience    197 

XXXVIII  Love  200 

XXXIX  Sympathy   207 

XL               Kindness     208 

XLI               Tenderness 210 

XLII             Ability    !. 221 

XLIII  Nature's  Beneficence   to  the 

Self-Possessed 218 

XLIV            Resume  231 

XLV             A  Tribute  to  the  Higher  Life  ....  235 


INTRODUCTION 


THE  most  fitting  introduction  to  this  book  is  a  sketch 
of  the  Hfe  and  work  of  Josephine  M.  Holmes, 
through  whom  the  philosophy  herein  embodied  was  first 
given  to  the  world.  It  has  been  through  her  instruc- 
tion, guidance  and  helpfulness  directed  toward  the  life 
of  the  writer  that  this  particular  expression  of  her  prin- 
ciples is  possible. 

For  the  past  twenty  years  Miss  Holmes  has  been 
voicing  the  principles  of  the  Progressive  Life  both  in 
Europe  and  America,  and  during  all  of  her  life  she  has 
lived  them.  She  is  not  one  who  preaches  but  does  not 
practise.  The  laws  and  methods  herein  described  she 
has  constantly  applied  in  her  own  life  and  in  her  work 
with  others. 

While  Miss  Holmes  has  a  public  mission  to  perform, 
she  has  thought  best  to  limit  it,  for  a  time,  to  the  devel- 
opment of  co-workers.  There  are  many  people  scattered 
over  the  earth  who  have  special  capabilities  hidden 
away  under  the  errors  they  have  allowed  to  creep  into 
their  characters.  These  defects  have  darkened  them, 
and  have  made  them  unconscious  of  their  real  natures 
and  abilities.  For  the  awakening,  training  and  general 
helpfulness  of  such  souls  Miss  Holmes  has  for  the  last 
fifteen  years  devoted  the  major  part  of  her  time.     The 


X  INTRODUCTION 

sole  object  of  her  work  in  this  direction  has  been  to  aid 
those  who  are  by  nature  fitted  to  co-operate  with  her  in 
extending  help  to  suffering  humanity.  There  are  many 
avenues  through  which  help  may  go  forth  from  the  cen- 
ter  established  by  this  most  able  leader.  There  is  much 
work  waiting  to  be  done  by  those  who  will  reach  the 
required  standard  of  character  and  ability.  We  shall  go 
further:  there  are  many  born  for  the  purpose  of  uniting 
to  promote  the  Progressive  Life,  but  they  have  been 
deluded,  lost  their  way  and  forgotten  their  missions. 

Many  have  listened  to  Miss  Holmes'  philosophy  during 
the  long  period  in  which  she  has  been  teaching;  many 
have  endorsed  her  principles  as  sound  and  true,  and 
many  have  started  on  the  way  to  live  them.  Others 
have  vowed  to  attain  the  required  standard  and  unite 
their  abilities  with  her's  to  carry  the  work  forward. 
Of  those  who  have  placed  themselves  under  training, 
with  these  objects  in  viev/,  few  have  been  able  to  stand. 
A  number  have  gone  on  for  different  periods  of  time, 
and  some  have  conquered  much;  but  sooner  or  later  they 
have  succumbed  to  certain  weaknesses,  which,  when 
the  final  test  came,  they  refused  to  overcome.  A  few 
have  forged  bravely  ahead,  doing  much  toward  building 
their  characters  and  cultivating  abilities  which  promised 
well  until  they  sighted  success.  Many  people  in  this 
world  have  not  been  able  to  endure  success,  and  espe- 
cially is  it  dangerous  when  one  is  just  beginning  to  feel 
the  power  which  can  come  only  by  conquering  a  defec- 
tive nature.  In  the  cases  of  those  who  reached  this 
point  they  stumbled  over  the  obstacles  which,  unsub- 


INTRODUCTION  XI 

jected,  must  always  interfere  with  progression.  Pride 
and  self-importance,  followed  by  anger  and  discontent, 
asserted  themselves  with  rising  capabilities,  and  they 
stepped  once  more  from  the  path  that  leads  to  victory. 

There  are  those  about  Miss  Holmes  today,  faithfully 
serving  the  cause,  who  have  stood  loyal  and  true 
through  the  rising  and  falling,  coming  and  going  of 
the  others.  There  are  others  who  are  earnestly  en- 
deavoring to  prove  themselves  worthy,  and  who,  we 
hope,  will  stand  all  tests,  and  rise  to  the  standard  of 
able  workers. 

During  all  the  wavering,  fluctuation  and  failure  of 
the  students  who  should  today  be  standing  by  Miss 
Holmes'  side,  aiding  and  supporting  her  in  her  efforts, 
this  remarkable  woman  has  stood  firm  and  true  to  her 
principles.  All  great  teachers  have  been  misunderstood 
by  their  contemporaries,  and  most  of  them  have  been 
appreciated  only  after  their  death.  So  far  Miss  Holmes 
is  no  exception  to  the  rule.  People  of  all  classes  have 
sought  her  for  help,  and  have  received  it.  All  kinds  of 
physical,  mental  and  spiritual  ailments  have  succumbed 
to  the  powers  generated  through  the  purity  of  her  life. 
The  heads  of  royal  families  and  their  handmaids,  the 
rich  and  the  poor;  the  intellectual  and  the  unlearned, 
all  alike  have  received  and  may  receive  her  blessings. 
She  has  received  much  praise  and  much  censure. 
Tremendous  has  been  her  misrepresentation;  and  though 
all  who  have  accepted  her  instruction  and  ministration 
have  been  helped,  though  many  have  been  saved  from 
malignant  forms  of  sickness,  and  from  death,  and  others 


Xll  INTRODUCTION 

from  mental  and  spiritual  conditions  worse  than  death, 
yet— we  regret  to  say— few  today  acknowledge  the  hand 
that  succored  them. 

To  all  these  things  Miss  Holmes  is  impervious.  Strong, 
undisturbed,  patient,  enduring,  just,  wisely  kind  and 
obedient  to  the  Mighty  Powers  which  govern  and  pro- 
tect her,  she  has  gone,  and  will  go,  steadily  on  in  the 
fulfilment  of  her  duties.  There  are,  however,  many 
who  appreciate  her,  and  we  believe  the  number  will 
constantly  increase  as  her  work  is  better  known  and  she 
is  better  understood.  Without  over-estimation  or  preju- 
dice, we  do  not  hesitate  to  prophesy  that  before  twenty 
more  years  shall  have  passed  Josephine  M.  Holmes  will 
be  acknowledged  as  having  advanced  the  most  rational, 
the  most  necessary  and  the  most  irrefutable  philosophy 
before  the  world;  and  that  those  who  take  the  trouble, 
and  are  capable  of  knowing  her,  will  concede  her  to  be 
the  most  consistent,  both  in  theory  and  practise,  of  any 
teacher  of  the  age. 

Miss  Holmes  has  erected  a  pleasant  and  sightly  home 
on  one  of  the  outlying  hilltops  of  Los  Angeles,  dedicated 
to  the  training  of  workers.  Here,  during  certain  periods, 
she  will  receive,  teach  and  train  those  who  can  and  will 
take  advantage  of  this  opportunity. 

Further  information  may  be  received  by  communicat- 
ing with  Miss  J.  M.  Holmes,  3311  West  Temple  street, 
Los  Angeles,  Calif. 


THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 


INSTRUCTION    I 

EARTH   PLANES 

IN   order  that   life   shall   be  progressive,  it  must  be 
natural. 

Growth  is  the  inevitable  corollary  of  the  undisturbed 
operation  of  nature's  laws. 

The  laws  of  nature  are  rules  the  co-operation  of  which 
result  in  natural  growth.  These  rules  relate  to  the  sus- 
tenance, protection  and  development  of  life,  and  apply 
physically,  mentally  and  spiritually. 

Artificial  development  is  not  progression. 

Progression  depends  upon  the  building  or  preserving 
of  a  noble  character,  which  insures  a  natural  growth  of 
the  whole  organism. 

Artificial  development  is  the  culture  of  mind,  body 
and  environment  as  primal  objects. 

To  show  the  operation  and  results  of  artificial  life 
versus  the  natural  life  and  its  fruits  is  the  work  that 
lies  before  us. 

We  wish  to  announce  in  the  beginning  that  the 
philosophy  we  are   presenting   is  entirely  based   upon 


2  THE   PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

—not  the  assumption— but  the  positive  knowledge  that 
there  is  a  spirit  in  man,  for  the  protection,  awaken- 
ing- and  development  of  which  the  earth  has  existence j 
and  ^at/the  purpose  of  life  on  the  earth  is  growth  into 
higher  and  more  complete  states  of  individuality.  The 
development  of  individuality,  in  its  highest  and  broadest 
_sense,  is  what  is  meaaLby  The  Progressive  Life.  \^ 

Progression  is  the  law  of  nature,  to  further  which  all 
other  laws  are  formed.  So  important  is  The  Progres- 
sive Life  that  all  laws  conspire  to  promote  development 
or  tend  toward  destruction. 

One  who  understands  nature  and  her  operations  may 
thus  read  her  message  to  humanity  : 

"  I  am  thy  guide ,  thy  protector,  and  the  promoter 
of  thy  highest  well-being.  Disregard  me  not ;  neither 
disobey  my  mandates— or  suffering  and  death  shall  be 
thy  portion.  Let  MY  nature  be  thy  nature.  Follow 
my  behests  and  I  will  lead  thee  along  paths  of  peace 
to  life  eternal.  From  one  point  of  excellence  to  another, 
from  one  exalted  state  to  the  next,  thou  shalt  finally 
progress— even  though  thou  art  pursued  through  ages 
of  time  by  the  lash  of  self-engendered  suffering  before 
thou  wilt  consent  to  start  on  the  upward  path. '  * 

There  is  no  way  to  insure  unbroken  progression  other 
than  by  the  strict  observance  of  nature's  laws.  Human 
life,  thus  far,  has  been  characterized  by  a  circular  move- 
ment caused  by  repeated  steps  forward  and  backward 
—a  rising  to  certain  heights  and  crashing  to  pieces. 
This  has  been  true  of  nations,  institutions  and  individ- 
uals; and  the  agencies  that  have  caused  history  to  repeat 


t 


EARTH  PLANE  3 

itself  throughout  the  past  are  at  work  all  over  the 
world  today.  These  agencies  are  the  destructive  forces 
operating  because  of  man's  disobedience  to  natural  law, 
and  interference  with  natural  growth.  That  the  people 
of  the  world  are  paying  little  or  no  heed  to  nature's  laws, 
and  that  they  are  leading  false  and  artificial  lives,  is  in 
eveiy  direction  apparent.  That  they  are  receiving 
results  of  the  destructive  forces  thereby  set  in  motion 
is  also  evident.  Evil  is  the  result  of  broken  laws  and 
perverted  life,  and  he  who  would  change  his  conditions 
must  change  his  life. 

The  following  instructions  will  bear  directly  on  the 
principles  of  progression,  their  present  perversions,  and 
the  possibilities  of  the  restoration  of  the  individual  to 
his  true  state. 

We  shall  deal  with  facts  familiar  to  all,  but  view  them 
from  a  standpoint  different  from  that  usually  taken,  and 
throw  on  them  a  new  light.  The  modes  of  life  we  advo- 
cate are,  in  most  respects,  the  antitheses  of  those  in 
general  use.  If,  according  to  the  higher  standards  of 
human  life,  and  taken  either  individually  or  as  a  whole, 
present  results  were  satisfactory,  the  methods  now 
pursued  could  not  be  questioned.  Inasmuch  as  there  is 
a  great  cry  in  the  heart  of  humanity,  and  as  individ- 
uals are  constantly  seeking  more  than  they  have  known, 
it  is  evident  that  present  ways  and  means  are  greatly 
wanting.  Many  people  would  like  better  conditions 
and  brighter  lives,  but  they  are  trying  to  get  new  results 
from  old  methods. 

We  are  going  to  make  special  appeal  to  the  indi\idual 


4  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

who  is  conscious,  or  beginning  to  be  conscious,  that 
there  are  needs  in  his  Hfe  for  which  the  resources  of 
the  world  have  nothing  to  offer.  When  one  has  reached 
this  place  he  has  usually  tried  many  methods— or  many 
ways  of  applying  the  same  methods— to  find  satisfaction, 
and,  meeting  with  repeated  failures,  he  becomes  willing 
to  change.  One  who  is  satisfied  is,  with  possible  excep- 
tions, beyond  our  present  jurisdiction.  Our  work  lies 
with  the  one  who  has  suffered  enough  to  make  him  wil- 
ling to  listen,  to  learn,  and  to  apply  the  principles  which 
make  growth  possible  and  enlarge  human  happiness. 

Before  further  considering  these  principles,  it  is 
necessary  to  explain  something  of  the  different  planes 
to  which  they  apply: 

The  earth  represents  the  material  plane.  It  occupies 
a  place  in  the  plan  of  creation  with  special  reference  to 
the  protective  and  magnetic  qualifications  of  physical 
organisms,  which  form  envelopes  peculiarly  adapted  to 
the  development  of  individuality. 

Belonging  to  the  earth,  or  material  plane,  are  three 
other  planes,  viz. ,  the  physical,  mental  and  spiritual,  with 
their  substates.  The  substates  of  each  plane  simply 
mean  the  different  grades  of  development.  These  three 
planes  apply  both  to  humanity  at  large  and  to  the 
individual.  The  material  is  the  governing  plane,  and 
while  all  who  live  on  the  earth  function  on  all  three 
planes,  they  are  subject  to  the  laws  of  the  physical. 

With  reference  to  humanity  at  large  :  People  whose 
lives  are  governed  by  their  bodies,  with  little  or  no  ref- 
erence to  the  mental  or  spiritual,  belong  to  the  physical 


EARTH   PLANE 


plane  in  its  more  limited  sense.  This  means  that  the 
physical  is  subject  to  the  abuse  rather  than  the  use  of 
the  laws  that  govern  it.  Those  who  are  extensively 
influenced  by  intellectual  considerations  function  largely 
on  the  mental  or  intellectual  plane.  \That  which  per- 

/tains  to  the  moral  nature,  character,  spirit  or  individu- 

\ality  belongs  to  the  spiritual  plane. 

The  three  planes,  in  their  application  to  the  individual, 
may  be  spoken  of  as  separate  organisms  embodied  in  the 
human  organism  as  a  whole. 

The  Phijsical  Plane,  or  Organism,  comprises  the  body, 
its  senses,  faculties  and  the  life  forces.  The  life  forces 
the  body  attracts  and  incorporates  into  its  organism,  and 
thereby  it  generates  strength,  vitality,  power  and 
magnetism. 

The  Mental  Plane,  or  Organism.,  is  made  up  of  the 
mind,  its  faculties,  activities  and  \ntal  force.  The  vital 
force  is  received  from  the  spirit,  and  from  the  life  forces 
attracted  and  incorporated  by  and  transmitted  from  the 
physical. 

The  Spiritual  Plane,  or  Organism,  is  formed  of  the 
individual  ego,  or  the  spirit,  with  its  faculties,  feelings 
and  soul.  The  soul  is  the  spirit  body,  composed  of 
the  life  forces  attracted  and  gathered  by  the  physical 
body  and  attracted  and  held  by  the  spirit.  All  the  emo- 
tions and  feelings— other  than  those  recorded  by  the 
physical  organism— all  the  attributes  and  traits  of  char- 
acter belong  to  the  spirit.  Without  the  spirit  no  part 
of  the  organism  can  feel  or  function;  but  we  make  a  dis- 
tinction, for  sake  of  convenience,  between  the  feelings 


6  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

of  the  physical  and  those  that  belong  to  the  spiritual 
plane.  For  example  :  fear,  anger,  jealousy,  love,  peace, 
benevolence,  or  any  characteristics,  good  or  bad,  and 
the  feelings  and  emotions  arising  therefrom,  belong  to 
the  spiritual  plane. 

Beside  the  earth  and  its  states  and  substates,  there 
are  many  other  planes,  some  lower,  some  higher.  We 
shall,  at  present,  enter  into  no  detail  concerning  these 
planes,  beyond  stating,  for  the  sake  of  future  refer- 
ence, that  the  earth  plane,  as  a  whole,  is  subordinate  to 
the  Higher  Planes,  and  under  their  direct  jurisdiction. 

The  laws  of  nature,  their  application  and  relation  to 
these  different  planes  and  their  substates,  we  shall 
successively  discuss  with  reference  to  the  Progressive 
Life. 


INSTRUCTION  II 

THE  VALUE,  USE  AND  BENEFITS  OF  THE  PHYSICAL 

ORGANISM 

Humanity  is  functioning-  on  a  much  lower  plane  than 
the  standard  of  its  capabilities. 

Through  disobedience  to  nature's  laws  progression 
has  been  interfered  with  and  deflected;  therefore,  the 
present  status  of  humanity  represents  a  degraded  state. 

Probably  no  one  thing  has  been  and  is  less  understood, 
more  misrepresented  and  more  misused  than  the  human 
body  and  its  senses.  Without  a  clear  understanding  of 
the  purpose  of  your  physical  organism,  and  a  consci- 
entious application  of  that  which  you  know,  you  cannot 
develop  in  the  way  prescribed  by  nature. 

The  average  mind,  in  its  present  degenerate  state, 
is  prone  to  swing  from  one  extreme  to  another,  and  it 
is  at  these  extreme  points  of  the  compass  that  we  find 
the  masses  of  the  people  physically,  mentally  and  spir- 
itually functioning.  What  is  needed  is  equilibrium,  or 
a  place  of  balance;  for  only  when  this  is  preserved  can 
the  truth  be  seen. 

In  regard  to  the  human  body  this  extreme  attitude  is 
especially  notable.  Generally  speaking,  we  may  divide 
the  world  into  two  classes— those  who  misuse  the  bodv 


8  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

for  indulgence,  and  those  who  belittle  and  bemean  it  as 
a  stumbling  block  and  an  encumbrance. 

The  value  of  the  body  is  more  instinctively  felt  than 
understood;  its  use  is  not  known,  and  its  benefits  are  not 
realized.  The  various  religions  of  the  world  have  gar- 
bled the  subject  of  the  human  body  until  not  a  ray  of 
light  penetrates  the  maze  of  theories  and  conjectures 
with  which  they  have  bewildered  the  people,  while  the 
facts  that  show  the  real  value,  use  and  benefits  of  life  in 
the  physical  body,  here,  on  the  earth  or  material  plane, 
have  been  almost  lost  to  human  consciousness. 

The  human  body  is  an  incalculable  blessing— an  oppor- 
tunity for  progression  which  cannot  be  over-estimated. 
The  sooner  the  individual  awakens  to  this  mighty  fact 
the  sooner  will  he  be  in  a  position  to  begin  living  the 
life  that  shall  lift  him  out  of  his  darkness  and  suffering. 
So  long  as  you  do  not  know  what  your  physical  body  is 
for,  you  are  apt  to  make  mistakes  which  cause  a  long 
line  of  troubles,  one  following  in  the  wake  of  the  other. 
In  fact,  beginning  with  the  body,  you  must  learn  the 
whole  law  by  which  your  life  is  governed,  and  which 
applies  on  the  three  planes,  the  physical,  mental  and 
spiritual— to  which  the  human  being  belongs. 
f  The  body  is  valuable  because  in  no  way  can  the  indi- 
vidual develop  so  rapidly  and  safely  as  while  function- 
ing on  the  earth  plane,  in  the  body,  under  the  laws  that 
limit  the  physical  organism.  All  of  nature's  laws  are 
limitations  calculated  to  guard  the  progressing  individ- 
ual from  mistakes  which  retard  his  growth.  This  will 
more  fully  appear  as  we  proceed.     The  laws  that  limit 


THE  PHYSICAL  ORGANISM  9 

the  physical  body  are  peculiarly  fitted  to  fulfill  the  needs 
and  augment  the  growth  of  the  spirit  or  dweller  in  the 
body. 

The  spirit  of  man  is  not  necessarily  divine  or  perfect, 
but  is  capable  either  of  development  or  degeneration. 
What  the  chestnut  bur  is  to  the  little  kernel  within, 
what  the  chrysalis  is  to  the  butterfly,  what  the  w^omb  is 
to  the  developing  embryo  it  surrounds,  the  body  rightly 
used  is  to  the  awakening  spirit  of  man.  More  than 
this,  the  body  is  a  magnet,  a  central  point  of  attraction, 
toward  which  gravitate  the  life  essence  or  forces,  the 
potential  energy,  the  soul  elements— in  short,  the  essen- 
tials of  the  storehouse  of  nature.  These  elements  are,  in 
turn,  attracted  by  the  spirit  they  surround— forming  the 
soul— and  upon  which  the  spirit  feeds,  by  which  it  is 
nourished,  becomes  illuminated,  and  finally  awakens  to 
full  consciousness. 

Let  us  put  thip.  in  another  w?y.  The  soul  of  man  is 
composed  of  the  life  essence  or  forces,  or  potential 
energy,  or  nature's  essentials  which  clothe,  nourish  and 
awaken  the  spirit.  This  soul  substance  is  the  divinest 
part  of  the  individual,  as  he  stands  on  the  earth  today. 
The  spirit  may  have  partaken  of  many  inferiorities,  but 
the  life  forces  come  direct  and  pure  from  the  creative 
centers,  and  are  conveyed  to  the  human  org-anism  through 
the  various  mediums— both  crude  and  fine— which  con- 
nect with  and  belong  to  the  earth  or  material  plane. 
There  are  many  such  mediums,  the  most  familiar  ones 
being  the  sun,  air,  ether,  electricity,  and  all  kinds  of 
food  which  furnish  the  body  with  fuel. 


10  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

The  use  of  the  human  body  hes  in  the  fact  that  it 
forms  a  sort  of  armor  for  the  spirit  to  dwell  in  while 
sojourning  on  the  earth;  and,  at  the  same  time,  it  is  a 
sensitive,  high-class  mechanism,  or  organism  through 
which  the  spirit  functions. 

While  the  use  of  the  body  cannot  be  overestimated,  it 
should  be  the  obedient  servant  of  the  spirit.  Beyond 
giving  it  necessary  food,  clothing  and  protection,  to  best 
conserve  the  health,  energy  and  the  purposes  for  which 
it  is  intended,  the  individual  should  never  serve  the  body. 
Because  of  the  perversion  and  the  confusion  in  which  the 
world  is  involved,  the  body  has  been  given  the  position 
that  should  be  occupied  by  the  spirit.  The  body  is 
enthroned  as  though  it  were  the  sole  object  of  living.  It 
has  been  given  a  place  of  prominence  until,  in  human 
consciousness,  the  spirit  has  been  almost  eclipsed  ;  and 
the  theories  that  support  the  idea  of  the  spirit's  non- 
existence have  many  advocates  and  adherents.  In  this 
false  position  the  body  is  over-fed,  over-clothed,  and 
over-housed  by  nearly  all  who— through  fair  methods  or 
foul— can  gather  together  the  requisite  materials. 

The  cause  that  lies  back  of  all  this  is  the  fact  that 
desire  has  become  king,  ruler  and  leader  of  the  people, 
and  that  through  the  body,  its  senses  and  faculties, 
human  desire  is  gratified.  Thus,  that  which  was  by  na- 
ture intended  to  serve  the  highest  purposes  of  the  spirit, 
through  its  abuse  becomes  a  medium  for  all  kinds  of 
indulgence,  which  weaken  and  darken  the  spirit,  and 
check  progression.  For  the  gratification  of  innumerable 
desires,  men,  women  and  children  daily  and  hourly  sell 


THE   PHYSICAL  ORGANISM  11 

their  bodies,  minds,  souls  and  spirits  into  all  forms  and 
degrees  of  degradation  and  debauchery,  all  of  which 
smother  nobler  qualifications  and  higher  aspirations, 
until  the  light  is  almost  extinguished,  and  they  grovel 
in  a  sensual,  degenerate,  darkened  existence  more 
blameworthy  than  the  beasts  of  the  field. 

The  world  is  all  twisted,  distorted,  confused  and 
chaotic  with  dishonesty,  immorality  and  crime  of  every 
kind,  rampant  and  uncontrolled.  Though  we  wrote 
volumes  in  an  effort  to  depict  the  breadth  and  depth  to 
which  such  excesses  are  carried,  we  could  not  tell  but 
the  smallest  portion  of  the  sense  debauchery  or  the 
manifold  forms  of  iniquity  that  ravage  human  life. 
Carried  by  their  mad  impetus,  they  will  doubtless  con- 
tinue unchecked  until  the  Mighty  Governing  Hand, 
operating  through  nature,  shakes  the  earth  to  its  very 
center  and  awakens  people  from  their  deep,  narcotic, 
deadening  lethargy. 

The  state  characterized  by  these  conditions  and  many 
more  equally  deplorable,  all  of  which  beggar  description, 
man  boasts  of  as  a  high  civilization.  In  the  promotion 
.  of  a  civilization  which  has  no  cure  for  the  darkest,  dead- 
liest evils,  but  to  which  they  are  considered  a  necessary 
corollary,  the  human  race  spends  its  energy,  effort  and 
ability.  On  this  state,  from  well  meaning  but  short 
sighted  people,  prayers  continually  go  forth  for  blessings. 
One  who  correctly  interprets  the  past  may  know  that 
the  Higher  Powers  do  not  bless  such  a  civilization;  nor 
do  they  prosper  its  generations  ;  nor  will  any  be  blessed 
or  prospered  in  the  future  that  do  not  absolutely  change 


12  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

these  conditions  and  abide  by  the  law  of  righteousness— 
or  right  hving— which  leads  to  the  building  of  noble 
character  and  exalted  life. 

f  If  the  religious  world  would  learn,  apply  and  teach 
the  laws  of  nature,  which  insure  a  pure,  simple,  useful 
life,  it  would  have  less  occasion  for  supplication  and  get 
better  results. 

Let  all  adherents  of  the  various  cults,  which  are  cur- 
rently designated  as  "metaphysical,"  also  study  nature, 
and  learn  to  see  things  as  they  are,  and  they  will  awaken 

I  from  the  delusion  that  "All  is  spirit, "  "All  is  good," 
and  "Man  is  di\^ne,"  and  become  conscious  of  the 
quicksands  of  evil  into  which  they  are  daily  sinking. 
They  may  further  realize  that  through  their  ignorance 
of  the  forces  with  which  they  are  dealing,  they  are 
hourly  being  robbed  of  their  souls,  or  life  elements,  the 
control  of  which  they  so  proudly  boast— children  playing 
with  fire,  the  nature  or  danger  of  which  they  little  com- 
prehend. 

The  benefits  of  the  body  are  found  when  it  is  rightly 
understood— neither  neglected  nor  made  the  avenue  for 
indulgence,  but  put  into  its  right  position  as  protector, 
sustainer  and  servant  of  the  spirit.  The  spirit  should  be 
recognized  as  the  object  of  all  activity  and  the  regulator 
of  the  human  organism.  The  purpose  of  each  life  should 
'be  the  building  of  a  beautiful  character,  and  the  physical 
organism  should  serve  to  that  end. 

In  this  connection  we  wish  to  speak  of  a  mistake  very 
common  and  little  understood,  viz. —the  habit  of  living 
too  much  on  the  mental  and  spiritual   planes,  exclusive 


THE  PHYSICAL  ORGANISM  1 


o 


of  the  physical.  Tho  spirit  should  learn  not  to  allow 
itself  to  be  called  away  in  useless  mental  activities,  nor 
to  g-o  floating-  off  onto  spiritual  planes,  leaving-  the  body 
devitalized  and  disabled.  The  body  is  the  earthly  tab- 
ernacle of  the  spirit  and  there  the  spirit  must  live,  and 
through  the  body  it  must  function— or  be  subject  to 
destructive  forces. 

As  the  individual  lives  a  simple,  wholesome,  rig-ht  life, 
keeping  all  three  planes  united  and  co-operative,  the 
whole  organism  is  purified  and  vivifi.ed.  Nothing  does 
so  much  to  restore  and  preserve  the  health  and  strength 
of  the  body,  to  illumine  the  mind  and  increase  the  intel- 
ligence as  an  awakened  spirit,  at  hom.e  and  active  in  the 
body.  The  body  protects  and  feeds  the  spirit,  but  the 
spirit  vitalizes,    harmonizes  and   regulates   the   entire 

organism. 

The  body  itself  is  composed  of  the  life  forces,  and  had 
nature  prevailed  it  would  have  been  perfected  with  the 
spirit,  and  in  its  perfect  state  it  would  have  been  a  live, 
vibrant,  electrical  mass— pliable,  reflective  and  respon- 
sive—a part  of  the  soul  of  man.  Through  the  inherit- 
ance from  ages  of  defiling,  adulterating,  misusing  and 
degrading  it,  the  body  has  become  the  crude,  cumber- 
some, dense  composition  it  now  is.  Much,  however, 
may  still  be  done  toward  its  refinement.  It  should  be 
regarded  as  a  servitor,  and  at  the  same  time  as  a  sacred 
temple  in  which  the  spirit— enveloped  by  the  soul— may 
grow,  awaken  to  a  higher  state  of  consciousness,  and  be 
able  to  see  and  know  all  that  is  needed  for  the  perform- 
ance of  its  duty,  and  for  its  preparation  for  the  next 
state  in  its  life  of  progression. 


INSTRUCTION    III 


THE  SENSES 


V/e  have  said  that  humanity  is  in  a  state  of  degener- 
acy. It  is  degenerate  because  it  is  artificial.  Only  that 
which  is  natural  is  comprehensive  and  profound,  and  in 
the  degree  that  man  has  strayed  from  nature  he  has 
descended  from  the  enlarged  and  ennobled  standard  he 
would  have  compassed  had  he  naturally  developed. 

Nature  is  a  generous  endower,  and  the  senses  are  a  gift 
from  her  bounty,  which  bounty  has  but  one  object— the 
development  of  her  offspring.  The  senses  are  most  im- 
portant because  of  their  great  capabilities,  their  use  and 
value  in  furthering  this  end.  Through  a  false  and  artifi- 
cial life  man's  senses  and  faculties  have  become  deadened 
and  limitedto  a  tremendous  degree  when  compared  with 
what  they  might  have  been  and  even  with  what  they 
may  be  if  quickened  and  awakened  to  the  extent  of 
their  present  capacity.  The  senses  should  and  may 
extend  from  the  physical  organism,  through  the  mental 
organism,  to  the  spiritual  organism.  Their  cognition 
and  comprehension  should  and  may  embrace  not  only 
the  grosser  things  but  the  subtler  realities  of  all  three 
planes.  There  are  m.yriad  sounds,  colors  and  forms,  in 
fact,  vast  realms  teeming  with  life  as  real  as  the  visible. 


THE  SENSES  15 

material  plane,  all  of  which  are  invisible  and  unknown 
only  because  of  the  decadence  of  human  powers.  > 

Man  has  no  present  concept  of  the  real  standard  of 
his  possibilities.  He  looks  upon  his  weak  body,  dulled 
senses  and  limited  abilities,  and  thinks  he  is  as  God  or 
nature  ordained  him  to  be.  This  is  not  true.  He  is  just 
that  into  which  his  ideas,  desires,  sense  gratifications, 
habits  and  passions  have  caused  him  to  descend.  He 
has  becom.e  a  dwarfed,  distorted  offspring  of  nature. 
Still  there  is  within  him  the  impetus  to  be  greater  than 
he  is,  and  to  know  that  which  extends  beyond  his  pres- 
ent scope.  To  supply  the  deficiency  he  invents  many 
mechanical  devices,  and  at  the  same  time  continues  to 
live  the  life  and  make  the  mistakes  through  which  the 
deficiency  came.  Wonderful  is  the  genius  that  produces 
the  vast  variety  and  complexity  of  mechanisms  by  which 
man's  depleted  senses  and  faculties  are  artificially  ex- 
tended, yet  there  is  no  instrument,  however  fine  or  pow- 
erful, now  in  use,  nor  will  any  come  into  existence  for 
this  purpose,  but  by  that  same  thing  is  measured  the 
power  that  belongs  to  the  natural  man  and  the  depth  to 
which  he  has  fallen. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  convey  to  the  human  mind 
any  sort  of  an  adequate  description  of  what  the  grand 
and  natural  man  would  have  been  had  he  not  interfered 
with  and  perverted  his  development.  We  shall  present 
to  you  a  picture,  however,  which  may  serve  as  an  incen- 
tive for  you  to  live  a  natural  life  and  meet  the  require- 
ments for  progression.  As  you  develop  you  will  your- 
self see  and  know  the  possibilities  of  the  highly  awak- 
ened spirit  of  man. 


16  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

Had  man  been  carried  onward  and  upward  on  the 
natural  currents  of  his  being  he  would  have  grown  to  be 
almost  all  powerful.  His  range  of  vision  and  under- 
standing would  have  been  alm.ost  unlimited.  He  would 
have  been  the  very  spirit  of  joyousness  itself.  Em- 
bodied in  him,  in  active  manifestation,  life  of  his  life, 
nature  of  his  nature,  would  have  been  all  of  his  most 
exalted  ideals.  Man  has  in  some  degree  preserved  his 
ideals,  but  for  the  most  part  he  allows  them  to  float  over 
his  head,  and  sadly  does  he  fail  to  bring  them  down  and 
incorporate  them  into  his  daily  life. 

Every  individual  should  be  master  of  himself  and 
master  of  earth  conditions.  What  does  it  mean  to  be 
master  of  earth  conditions?  Had  man  not  fallen,  it 
would  have  meant  that  nature  and  all  her  laws  would 
have  harmonized  and  co-operated  for  the  preservation 
and  furtherance  of  the  spiritual,  mental  and  physical 
well-being  of  the  human  race,  and  that  the  earth  and 
all  forms  of  life  thereon  would  have  united  in  "the  com- 
mon purpose  of  progression  along  paths  of  purity, 
peace,  health  and  happiness  for  all.  To  be  master  of 
earth  conditions  now  means  for  each  individual  to  make 
his  environment— however  difficult,  trying,  or  fraught 
with  suffering— conduce  toward  the  strengthening  and 
beautifying  of  his  character,  until  no  phase  or  form  or 
degree  of  evil  has  power  to  master  the  spirit  or  to  cause 
him  to  yield  one  fraction  of  his  nobility.  It  means  that 
in  defiance  of  all  difficulties  and  obstacles,  the  individual 
must  go  steadily  on  in  the  fulfilment  of  his  mighty  pur- 
pose to  develop  an  exalted  individuality. 


THE  SENSES  17 

Comparing  the  present  possibilities  of  spiritual,  mental 
and  physical  development  with  the  standard  described 
as  belonging  to  natural  man,  it  should  be  remembered 
that  the  human  race  has  from  generation  to  generation 
descended  so  low  in  the  scale  of  natural  ability  and  en- 
dowment, and  it  carries  with  it  such  burdens  of  heredity, 
that  no  individual  can  hope  to  retain  all  that  belongs  to 
the  earth  life.  But  he  who  is  willing  to  cease  doing  the 
destructive  things,  and  to  conform,  as  far  as  possible, 
to  nature's  laws,  living  a  simple,  useful  life,  at  all  times 
being  careful  to  use  and  not  abuse  the  senses,  will  be 
able  to  wonderfully  increase  his  perceptive  faculties  and, 
to  a  large  degree,  receive  the  blessings  that  accrue  from 
a  natural  life. 

What  people  need  to  realize  is  the  difference  between 
the  use  of  and  the  indulgence  in  their  senses.  The 
senses  are  created  for  the  one  purpose  of  being  valuable 
helpers  to  the  progressing  spirit,  and  they  should  never 
be  used  for  the  gratification  of  desires.  Through  the 
perceptive  faculties  knowledge  should  be  gained,  and 
the  less  the  senses  are  abused,  and  the  more  they  are 
purposefully  used,  the  more  quickened  and  accurate  they 
will  become.  When  you  want  to  know  anything  or  do 
anything  use  the  senses  or  faculties  needed  to  give  you 
the  knowledge  and  to  aid  you  in  the  performance  of 
your  work.  Be  guided  by  that  which  you  know  through 
the  faculties  given  you  for  that  purpose,  and  never  allow 
your  present  better  understanding,  gained  through  your 
sense  perceptions,  to  be  governed  by  preconceptions 
gleaned  through  reading,  hearsay  or  opinions. 


I 


18  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

If  you  wish  to  grow  you  should  not  try  to  gain  knowl- 
edge of  any  plane  except  the  one  on  which  you  are  liv- 
ing. The  only  knowledge  that  can  be  depended  upon 
as  unmixed  and  accurate  is  that  which  comes  through 
right  living  and  the  consequent  development  of  the 
senses  and  faculties.  You  are  living  on  the  physical 
plane,  and  you  should  there  be  content  to  function;  to 
learn  through  the  use  of  the  senses,  and  to  gain  just 
the  knowledge  that  is  necessary  to  promote  your  welfare 
and  the  performance  of  your  duty. 

If  you  would  like  to  be  beyond  the  possibility  of  being 
misled  by  any  of  the  visionary  and  imaginary  concepts 
of  life  and  its  relations  with  which  the  atmosphere  of 
the  world  is  teaming;  if  you  wish  to  know  the  real  facts 
of  nature  and  their  application  to  your  life;  if  you  wish 
to  become  more  intelligent,  more  alert,  to  gain  greater 
ability,  to  be  more  useful ;  if  you  wish  to  grow  to  a 
higher  standard  of  life,  and  regain  something  of  your 
lost  state— as  a  first  step,  STOP  your  self  indulgence. 

Each  one  is  here  for  a  purpose.  Each  has  duties  to 
perform.  If  one  is  not  conscious  of  this,  there  is  some- 
thing deadly  wrong. 

If  you  are  so  situated  that  the  necessity  of  earning  a 
livelihood  does  not  impel  you  to  useful  action,  and  you 
are  not  engaged  in  some  occupation  that  is  of  practical 
benefit  to  yourself  and  others;  if  you  are  spending  your 
time  in  useless  entertainment  and  gratification  of  your 
desires,  let  every  nobler  sentiment  in  your  being  cry  out : 
"  Shame  !  shame  on  such  a  hollow,  empty  existence  !  " 
You  are  squandering  in  your  useless,  indulgent  life,  that 


THE  SENSES  19 

which  others  have  produced,  and  you,  in  return,  produce 
nothing.  You  are  a  leech  and  a  vampire  on  society,  and 
you  are  sinking-  yourself  into  the  depths  of  a  benighted 
condition  from  which  it  may  take  you  thousands  of 
years  to  emerge. 

All  who  are  today  surrounding  themselves  with  wealth 
and  luxury  which  have  been  gained  at  the  expense  of 
the  higher  attributes  or  of  whatever  makes  for  the  en- 
nobling of  character,  let  them  listen.  All  who  are  wast- 
ing their  wealth  in  excesses  and  riotous  living,  let  them 
listen.  Let  them  open  their  eyes,  and  by  the  little  light 
they  have  left,  let  them  look  for  and  see  the  signs  of  the 
times.  They  are  recorded  in  their  own  lives  in  indelible 
letters  which  no  earthly  power  can  erase.  These  records 
point  to  facts  of  nature  behind  which  there  are  Mighty 
Powers  at  work.  In  Their  Governing  Hands,  whether 
he  realizes  it  or  not,  man's  destiny  is  held.  Nature's  laws 
are  immutable,  and  so  constructed  that  man  must  con- 
form to  their  demands  or  be  destroyed. 

You  who  sacrifice  honesty,  integrity,  nobility,  purity 
of  character,  the  soul  and  life  itself,  for  material  wealth, 
luxurious  en\'ironment  and  an  indulgent  life,  know  that 
your  estimation  of  these  things  is  a  mere  bagatelle  to 
the  value  that  the  Powers  which  operate  through  the 
laws  of  nature  place  upon  a  perfect  soul  and  an  enno- 
bled indi\aduality.  It  is  a  self-evident  proposition— the 
laws  of  nature  operate  to  construct  and  preserve  an  ex- 
alted invividuality.  If  the  individual  lives  in  conformity 
with  these  laws  he  will  be  led  from  one  state  to  another 
in  a  line  of  unbroken  progression,  from  which  the  neces- 


20  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

sary  light  and  power  are  never  withdrawn.  If  he  per- 
sists in  his  disregard  of  their  operation,  in  the  very 
nature  of  things  he  sets  destructive  forces  at  work  under 
the  ban  of  which  he  must  surely  come. 

This  fact  should  be  remembered  :  Try  to  ignore  nature 
and  avoid  the  straight  and  narrow  path  into  which  she 
would  lead  you,  and  you  are  face  to  face  with  the  inev- 
itable. Do  the  destructive  things  and  the  destructive 
forces  will  tear  and  rend  you,  body,  soul  and  spirit. 
Cease  to  do  them,  and  the  natural  trend  of  your  being  is 
onward  and  upward  without  end. 

Through  an  indulgent  life  one  dissipates  his  life  forces; 
his  soul  is  destroyed,  his  body  becomes  more  and  more 
crude,  weakened  and  subject  to  disease.  When  death 
comes  the  spirit  goes  out  naked  and  unprotected,  and  in 
a  state  of  great  suffering,  from  which  it  is  most  difficult 
to  be  rescued.  You  have  your  choice,  every  step  of  the 
way,  as  to  which  life  you  will  lead— the  constructive  or 
destructive— but  be  assured  the  longer  you  break  laws, 
and  the  more  darkened  you  become,  the  greater  your 
loss  will  be,  the  less  you  will  have  on  which  to  rebuild, 
and  the  harder  it  will  be  for  you  to  rise. 

As  it  is  with  the  individual,  so  it  is  with  the  whole. 
The  world  is  today  in  a  state  of  indescribable  chaos, 
with  almost  every  law— divine  or  temporal— torn  into 
shreds  and  ruthlessly  trampled  under  foot.  As  a  natural 
result,  the  destructive  forces  are  piling  mountain  high, 
and  daily  gaining  power. 

Are  you  not  awake  to  the  truth  of  these  facts  ?  Go 
before  the  seats  of  the  rulers  of  the  world,  whether  in 


THE  SENSES  21 

Asia,  Europe  or  America,  and  you  will  find  them  reeking 
with  corruption,  injustice,  cruelty  and  dishonesty. 

Go  into  the  social  world,  and  there  you  will  find  men 
and  women— many  of  whom  came  to  earth  with  a  special 
mission  for  suffering  humanity— lost  in  the  whirlpool  of 
sensuality— all  forgotten  save  the  pleasure  of  the  hour. 

Look  into  the  world  of  literature,  and  there  you  read 
just  what  the  sensual,  pleasure-loving  public  demands, 
and  that  for  which  it  will  pay.  With  few  exceptions, 
man's  genius  is  prostituted  and  used  to  tickle  the  fancy 
of  the  highest  bidder.  The  lessons  that  a  straight  and 
honest  history  might  have  taught  have  been  obscured 
by  the  policies  of  church  and  state  until  we  have  them 
handed  down  so  shaded  and  manipulated  that  they  are 
well  nigh  valueless.  Even  the  philosophy  of  the  world, 
which  appears  both  in  prose  and  poetry,  is  so  mixed  and 
twisted  that  the  harm  done  to  the  mind  that  imbibes  it 
far  overbalances  the  good  received  from  what  truth  it 
contains. 

The  religions  are  unspeakably  garbled.  They  have 
retained  a  few  facts,  but  they  are  largely  obscured  and 
colored  by  the  superstitions  and  the  personal  interests 
of  different  individuals  and  classes  of  individuals,  who 
have  cast  their  influences  upon  them  as  they  have  been 
handed  down  from  generation  to  generation,  until  today 
religion  is  more  of  a  farce  than  a  reality. 

Go  into  the  industrial  world  and  there  are,  not  only 
men  and  women,  but  millions  of  little  children,  .grinding 
their  bodies,  minds  and  souls  into  gold,  which  shall  serve 
to  increase  the  excesses  that  are  destroying  their 
masters. 


22  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

Go  into  the  home  life  and  read  the  sad  story  written 
there.  The  selfishness,  the  discontent,  the  inharmony, 
the  defiling  of  the  holiest  relations  of  human  fife,  and 
the  tragedies  arising  therefrom,  are  too  well  known  to 
need  defining. 

Yet  we  have  only  touched,  in  the  barest  outline  and 
generalities,  a  few  of  the  evils  that  characterize  the 
highest  civilizations,  and  the  most  respectable  society, 
to  say  nothing  of  the  more  benighted  peoples  and  the 
hideous  haunts  of  the  great  masses  that  are  designated 
as  social  outcasts. 

The  only  bright  streak  in  the  darkness  that  today  en- 
shrouds the  world  shines  through  the  hope  that  many 
individuals  will  enter  the  path  of  progression  and  unite 
in  the  strict  and  undivided  observance  of  every  rule, 
great  and  small,  for  the  establishment  of  a  just,  pure 
and  upright  life. 


INSTRUCTION    IV 


MIND 


TT7E  are  now  broug-ht  to  the  subject  of  the  mind  and 
^  '  its  faculties,  in  their  relation  to  the  Progressive 
Life. 

In  order  to  get  a  clear  idea  of  this  subject,  you  must 
remember  that  the  individual  self— the  spirit— is  the 
operator  back  of  the  mind.  The  mind  is  the  substance 
or  medium  used  by  the  spirit  to  receive  intelligence 
and  through  which  it  finds  expression  in  thought,  word 
and  deed.  We  may  liken  the  mind  to  a  reservoir  into 
which  is  poured  all  the  streams  of  the  being— good, 
bad  and  indifferent.  It  has  been  made  a  dumping 
ground  and  filled  with  all  sorts  of  rubbish.  The 
average  mind  opens  itself  to  every  vibration,  and  is 
ever  ready  to  imbibe  the  multitudinous  ideas,  theories 
and  opinions  to  be  gleaned  from  the  many  sources  of 
current  information. 

The  brain  is  the  organ  that  stores  up  much  of  this 
material :  it  is  also  the  transmitter  of  that  which  the 
spirit  wishes  to  convey.  When  an  idea  is  accepted  by 
the  mind  in  such  a  way  as  to  become  an  influence  upon 
the  individual,  brain  cells  are  formed  which  function 


24  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

in  connection  with  that  idea.  Your  brain  is  really 
created  according  to  that  with  which  you  choose  to 
identify  yourself.  You  thus  become  responsible  and 
you  have  the  power  to  reconstruct  it  at  will. 

Before  proceeding  further,  it  is  necessary  to  define 
our  meaning  of  ' '  knowledge, "  "  wisdom, "  "  intellect ' ' 
and  "  intelhgence, "  which  words  we  shall  repeatedly 
use  in  our  explanation  of  the  facts  with  which  we  are 
dealing.  Although  authorized  definitions  of  these 
terms  are  so  interchangeable  as  to  make  them  practically 
synonymous,  v/e  shall,  for  the  sake  of  convenience  and 
clearness,  draw  distinctive  lines  amiong  them. 

One  accepted  definition  given  of  intellect  is  "Mind 
collectively  and  currently  taken, ' '  and  in  this  sense  we 
shall  use  it.  That  which  pertains  to  the  mind  in  its 
present  mixed  state,  with  special  reference  to  the 
capacity  of  the  brain  for  recording  and  transmitting 
current  know^ledge,   we  name  intellect  or  intellectual. 

''Power  of  discernm.ent  or  cognition"  is  the  meaning 
of  intelligence  to   which  we  shall   confine  ourselves. 

One  may  have  an  intellect  crammed  with  much  lore 
but  be  inferior  in  clear  perceptive  power  and  compre- 
hensive ability.  Our  use  of  the  word  intelligence 
signifies  comprehension,  power  of  perception  or  discern- 
ment or  cognition. 

Knowledge  we  use  in  the  sense  of  '  'The  state  of  being 
aware  of ,  learning  or  acquired  information."  Knowl- 
edge may  be  based  on  fact  or  assumption :  it  may  be 
pure  and  accurate,  or  mixed  and  inaccurate. 


MIND  25 

Wisdom  is  intelligence  guided  and  directed  to  further 
man's  higher  well-being. 

It  is  a  great  mistake  to  allow  the  mind  to  be  influ- 
enced, colored  or  occupied  with  promiscuous  and  useless 
knowledge.  Other  persons'  opinions,  theories  and 
ideas  are  not  necessary  nor  valuable  to  you.  They 
make  the  mind  muddy  and  disorderly,  and  nothing  is 
more  destructive  to  a  high-grade  intelligence,  or  faculty 
of  knowing-that-which-exists-just-as-it-is,  than  the  ac- 
cumulation of  general  information. 

When  your  brain  is  stored  full  of  preconceived  ideas, 
theories,  opinions  and  speculations,  you  become  preju- 
diced; your  vision  is  clouded  and  your  power  of  correct 
discernment  and  analysis  is  destroyed.  Even  as  when 
you  look  through  colored  glasses,  everything  to  your 
vision  takes  on  the  hue  of  the  glass,  so  your  un- 
derstanding is  shaded  by  the  ideas  with  which  you 
have  stored  your  brain.  Under  these  conditions  your 
consciousness  cannot  awaken  to  a  higher  standard; 
neither  can  you  accurately  discern,  nor  wisely  govern, 
the  conditions  of  your  daily  life.  One  of  your  first 
duties  on  entering  the  Progressive  Life  is  to  close  the 
brain  against  intruding  vibrations  and  influences. 

Discontinue  your  promiscuous  reading,  especially  for 
pastime  or  amusement.  The  mind  like  the  senses  should 
not  be  used  for  indulgence  or  useless  entertainment. 
Cease  all  unnecessary  thinking.  Just  as  it  is  a  waste 
of  force  and  power  to  keep  any  part  of  the  body  in  con- 
stant  and  useless  motion,  so  it  weakens  and   destroys 


26  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

the  brain  and  the  mind;  it  also  harms  the  spirit.  You 
should  have  the  power  to  hold  the  mind  perfectly  still  at 
any  moment  and  for  any  length  of  time.  When  not 
necessarily  engaged  in  the  performance  of  duty  it  should 
naturally  lapse  into  non-action. 

Withdraw  your  many  interests  in  things  that  do  not 
concern  you.  Take  special  care  to  desist  from  the  myr- 
iad petty  considerations  that  involve  the  average  mind. 
Learn  to  strictly  mind  your  own  business  on  the  physi- 
cal, mental  and  spiritual  planes.  Do  not  allow  yourself 
to  be  called  off  from  the  material  plane  on  which  you 
are  now  functioning,  nor  try  to  gain  knowledge  be- 
longing to  any  other  state,  or  knowledge  that  carries 
you  beyond  the  demands  of  the  present.  All  useless 
mental  activity,  such  as  speculating,  conjecturing,  mem- 
orizing, dreaming,  dwelling  on  the  past  or  looking  into 
the  future,  planning  or  scheming  ahead  of  time,  or  any 
sort  of  idle  or  unnecessary  thinking,  carries  the  spirit 
away  from  the  body;  makes  one  impractical  and  delusive 
and  is  in  many  ways  both  dangerous  and  destructive. 

The  mind  is  for  use  in  connection  with  the  senses  and 
faculties  when  the  senses  and  faculties  are  engaged  un- 
der duty  or  necessary  activity.  We  repeat :  live  in  your 
body;  put  life  into  every  fiber  of  it;  keep  senses  alert, 
faculties  alive  and  wide-awake  and  be  fully  conscious  of 
every  action.  To  b^-conscious  at  all  times,  means  never 
to  do  anything  mechanically,  absent-mindedly  or  care- 
lessly, and  to  accomplish  this  the  spirit  must  be  centered 
in  the  body. 


MIND  27 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing,  you  must  be  master  of 
your  feelings,  emotions  and  desires,  for  these  things  dis- 
turb and  darken  the  mind;  and  one  by  one,  they,  too 
must  be  conquered  and  weeded  out.  The  correct  atti- 
tude to  be  observed  by  the  one  who  wishes  to  progress 
is  comprised  in  the  following  maxim.  Ee  always  calm, 
sweet,  serene,  wide-awake  and  alive,  contented  and 
happy. 

The  natural  state  of  the  mind  is  pure,  calm  and  reflec- 
tive like  a  clear,  still,  lake.  When  this  standard  is 
reached,  as  the  lake  reflects  the  rays  of  the  sun,  so  such 
a  mind  mirrors  the  light  from  higher  planes  and  awak- 
ens to  a  larger,  keener  intelligence.  Such  an  intelli- 
gence is  followed  by  the  knowledge  and  wisdom  neces- 
sary to  the  perfoiTnance  of  duty,  and  the  guidance  of  the 
individual  from  planes  of  darkness  to  higher  states  to- 
ward which  the  spirit  inherently  gravitates. 

As  indispensable  to  the  mental,  spiritual  and  physical 
growth,  the  child  mind  should  be  perserved  from  the 
mistakes  we  have  just  delineated.  The  process  of  child 
education  greatly  impairs  and  tends  to  destroy  the  brain. 

The  brain  of  the  child  is  not  formed,  and  while  it  is 
growing  it  should  not  be  filled  with  all  sorts  of  informa- 
tion which  the  world  considers  necessary. 

During  its  period  of  development,  the  whole  organism 
should  be  allowed  to  progress  as  naturally  as  possible. 
What  is  true  of  other  portions  of  a  child's  body  is  true 
of  the  brain.  Force  a  child  into  labor  which  is  either  too 
heavy  or  too  prolonged  for  its  delicate  physique  and  its 
growth  is  retarded— the  physical,  mental  and  spiritual 


28  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

organisms  become  dwarfed  and  incapacitated.  This  is 
exemplified  in  the  terrible  conditions  attendant  upon 
child  labor.  In  a  less  conspicuous  degree,  but  similarly, 
this  process  is  repeated  through  intellectual  training  of 
the  child.  Begin  the  schooling  of  a  child  at  an  early- 
age  ;  work  and  crowd  the  little,  unformed  brain,  trying 
to  make  it  comprehend  ideas  far  beyond  its  capacity, 
and  irreparable  damage  is  done.  Under  these  conditions 
it  is  impossible  for  any  child  to  reach  the  high  standard 
of  intelligence  of  which  it  is  naturally  capable. 

Our  present  system  of  education  is  one  of  the  most 
damaging  mistakes  that  the  world  is  today  making. 

Abstract  mental  culture,  whether  of  the  child  or  adult, 
is  artificial,  therefore,  an  interference  with  natural 
growth  and  necessarily  detrimental.  The  curriculum  of 
present-day  schools  and  colleges  needs  to  be  well  sifted 
through  a  broad-meshed  sieve,  with  a  view  to  extracting 
that  which  is  non-essential.  Should  this  be  done,  very 
little  time  and  effort  would  be  needed  to  complete  any 
course. 

It  is  a  great  pity  that  we  have  no  schools  for  the  train- 
ing of  character,  through  the  application  of  nature's 
laws— schools  where  the  child  may  be  taught  not  to 
interfere  with  nature's  progressive  methods.  Teach  a 
child  not  to  do  the  destructive  things  and  its  spirit,  mind 
and  body  will  grow  to  a  standard  far  beyond  that  ordina- 
rily reached,  and  were  it  not  weighed  down  by  hereditary 
weaknesses,  it  would  grow  to  magnificent  proportions. 

Artificial  cultivation  is  always  of  one  part  of  the  or- 
ganism at  the  expense  of  another.     Nature  insures  an  all- 


THE   SPIRIT  29 

round  development.  The  mind  should  not  be  cultivated 
at  the  expense  of  the  physical ;  nor  independent  of  the 
physical.  Neither  should  the  physical  be  artificially  ex- 
ercised with  no  other  purpose  than  physical  culture. 

Above  all  things,  no  development  should  be  allowed 
at  the  cost  of  the  spiritual  nature,  or  the  finer  attributes 
that  build  a  beautiful  character.  Furthermore,  all  who 
try  to  build  the  spiritual  nature  through  abstract  mental 
activity  will  not  only  meet  with  dismal  failure,  but  may 
cause    irreparable    damage    to    the    whole    organism. 

Nature  begins  with  the  spirit.  As  the  spirit  becomes 
pure,  awakens,  takes  control,  at  the  same  time  engag- 
ing in  useful  activity,  every  part  of  the  organism 
becomes  more  vital,  stronger  and  more  powerful. 

On  the  question  of  mental  and  physical  culture  the 
world  has  gone  to  its  usual  extremes,  but  just  so  surely 
as  people  follow  artificial  m.ethods,  so  surely  will  they 
receive  mediocre  and  transitory  results.  More  than 
this,  artificiality  insures  ultimate  degeneracy.  All  that 
the  most  ambitious  may  strive  to  gain  by  such  methods 
is  contained  in  nature.  Beyond  nature  one  cannot  go, 
and  when  one  has  exhausted  artifice  he  has  succeeded 
only  in  deflecting  the  true  course  and  gaining  a  coun- 
terfeit culture  which  is  a  mere  travesty  on  the  beauty 
of  the  real. 

Humanity  is  a  pigmy  race,  with  the  best  and  highest 
types  far  below  the  standard,  and  all  because  of  the 
ignorance  of,  and  disobedience  to,  the  requirements  of 
nature.  But  all  hope  is  not  gone.  The  individual  may 
do  much  to  restore  his  lost  dominion,  if  he  is  willing  to 


30  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

work  for  it.  Begin  now,  wherever  you  find  yourself,  to 
distrust  all  your  opinions ;  to  cancel  your  preconceived 
ideas,  theories  and  attendant  prejudices ;  to  refuse  ad- 
mittance to  suggestions,  influences  and  promiscuous 
knowledge ;  to  quiet  your  mind  and  use  it  only  when 
necessary.  Thus  you  will  do  much  toward  clarifying 
your  mind  and  another  step  will  be  taken  toward  your 
restoration. 

Emptying  and  clarifying  the  mind  is  often  regarded 
as  a  difficult  task,  and  through  the  operation  it  some- 
times seems  as  though  one  were  losing  his  individuality. 

This  is  one  of  the  delusions  which  belongs  to  artificial 
development.  In  all  the  accumulations  of  the  average 
brain— other  than  the  actual  knowledge  gained  through 
practical  activity— there  is  little  that  is  accurate  and 
much  that  is  hopelessly  false.  The  current  literature 
of  the  day  represents  just  these  conditions.  It  is  full  of 
conflicting  theories,  opinions  and  speculations— scarcely 
any  two  representatives  of  a  certain  line  of  thought 
agreeing  as  to  subject  matter  or  methods. 

They  who  are  intellectual  fill  their  minds  with  all 
these  contradictions  and  inconsistencies  from  which— 
spiced  with  limited  experience— they  deduct  further 
conclusions  and  many  times  formulate  new  theories, 
which  they  add  to  the  general  mixture.  There  are 
flashes  of  light  which  come  in ;  certain  facts  that  are 
laid  hold  of  and  carry  power ;  but  whether  the  avenue 
of  knovviedge  be  science,  mechanics,  art,  history,  phil- 
osophy or  religion,  that  which  is  true  is  so  intertwined 


MIND  31 

with  that  which  is  false  that  the  treatises  on  these  var- 
ious branches  contribute  comparatively  little  to  practical 
application  ;  while,  from  the  standpoint  of  a  high  indi- 
viduality, all  such  research  confuses  and  darkens  the 
spirit. 
Progression  cannot  begin  until  confusion  ends. 


INSTRUCTION    V 


THE   SPIRIT 


We  have  explained  the  use,  value  and  benefits  of  the 
human  body:  we  have  told  how  the  senses  and  faculties 
may  be  quickened  and  awakened ;  we  have  urged  the 
necessity  of  quieting  and  clarifying  the  mind  and  hinted 
at  the  qualifications  of  the  spiritual  organism.  The  next 
step  is  the  consideration  of  these  qualifications  which, 
including  those  of  the  other  organisms,  constitute  the 
requirements  of  a  Progressive  Life. 

As  to  what  the  spirit  is,  current  theories  and  opinions 
which  have  percolated  through  the  mixed  and  darkened 
consciousness  of  man  have  so  colored  and  twisted  the 
actual  facts  that  hardly  any  two  have  the  same  idea. 
The  spirit  is  the  central  figure  for  which  all  exists.  It 
is  the  growing,  or  progressing,  awakening,  immortal 
ego.  Into  the  hands  of  the  spirit  may  be  given  the  key 
of  power,  of  light  and  of  wisdom.  The  spirit  is  perfect 
or  imperfect  in  just  the  degree  that  it  has  served  or 
disobeyed  the  laws  of  nature.  It  may'be  an  angel  or  a 
devil,  according  to  the  motives  and  attributes  with 
which  it  has  become  identified. 

This  brings  us  to  the  fall  of  man,  or  to  his  first  dis- 
obedience to  law.    ?Ages  before  the  days  of  savagery, 


ERRATA 

Page  32,  8th  line,  read  the  for  "these  ;" 
p.  57,  3rd  line,  after  "just,"  read  halfway; 
p.  144,  27th  line,  for  "contentment,"  read 
contention;  p.  152  4th  line,  before  "pre- 
scribed," read  path;  p.  168,  last  line,  after 
"this,"  read  life;  p.  176,  7th  hne,  after 
' '  been, ' '  read  made. 


THE  SPIRIT  33 

•which  days  mark  the  earliest  period  of  man's  hfe  of 
which  there  is  any  authentic  record,  there  lived  the 
natural  man.  He  was  a  perfect  child  of  nature,  simple, 
pure  and  joyous,  occupying  a  state  of  which  there  has 
since  been  no  known  counterpart  on  the  earth.  Because 
he  was  obedient  to  nature,  he  was  guided,  protected 
and  instructed  from  Higher  Planes.  Nature's  bounty 
was  sufficient  for  all  his  needs,  and  so  long  as  he  con- 
tinued in  his  pure,  natural  life  his  spiritual,  mental  and 
physical  progression  was  assured. 

While  history  holds  no  record  to  verify  this  fact, 
geology  with  its  various  branches  tells  the  tale  that 
man  lived  upon  the  earth  in  prehistoric  days,  so  far 
remote  that  no  accurate  estimate  of  time  can  be  given. 
In  the  face  of  this  fact,  to  say  nothing  of  the  un- 
fathomed  depths  of  nature's  secrets— secrets  of  which 
the  most  learned  admit  their  ignorance— let  no  one  then 
presume  to  deny  the  thing  he  is  powerless  to  refute. 

Through  desire  man  took  his  first  step  dov^nward. 
Desire  to  gain  more  knowledge  and  greater  power,  in  a 
shorter  time  and  an  easier  way  than  through  the  pro- 
cess of  natural  growth,  came  into  the  mind  of  man.  So 
iDegan  the  long  descent  from  a  state  of  purity,  simplic- 
ity, sweetness  and  possibilities  for  development,  wholly 
TDeyond  man's  present  power  of  conception.  The  grati- 
fication of  one^sire  led  to  the  creation  of  others;  until 
today  humanity  is  so  entangled  in  the  net  it  has  woven 
about  itself  that  no  individual  on  the  earth  plane  can 
wholly  extricate  himself. 


34  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

At  any  time  along  the  way  man  might  tiave  con- 
quered his  desires,  turned  back  to  nature  and  once  more 
have  entered  the  Progressive  Life.  But  even  as  he 
refuses  today,  so  at  every  step  of  the  way,  this  he  has 
refused  to  do. 

History  has  no  record  of  man  before  he  began  break- 
ing laws  and,  therefore,  falling  from  his  native  state. 
The  records  point  to  ages  of  wrong  doing,  during  which 
humanity  has  fluctuated  through  various  stages  of 
inferiority.  In  an  effort  to  com.pensate  for  this  inferior- 
ity, we  have  the  great  and  complex  mechanism  called 
civilization,  nearly  all  of  which  would  have  been  prac- 
tically useless  to  the  exalted  and  powerful  being  into 
which  man  would  have  developed  had  he  not  begun 
breaking  laws  and  interfering  with  the  natural  trend  of 
his  being. 

All  the  different  historical  epochs  define  only  different 
stages  since  the  fall  of  man  and  his  long  climb  up  the 
ladder  of  artificiality.  He  has  invented  all  kinds  of 
artificial  and  mechanical  means  and  appliances  to  over- 
come the  difficulties  which  beset  his  way.  His  accom- 
plishments toward  bolstering  and  patching  up  his 
weaknesses  he  calls  wonderful  progress.  His  success 
is  so  limited,  however,  and  his  infirmities  so  apparent, 
that  he  has  no  recourse  save  to  attribute  the  deficiency 
to  nature;  and  to  lower  the  standard  of  human  ability, 
whether  mental,  physical  or  spiritual  to  the  plane  that 
suits  his  action. 

If  you  are  daily  and  hourly  doing  the  things  which 
scatter  and  destroy  your  life  forces— life   forces  upon 


THE  SPIRIT  35 

which  your  spirit,  soul,  mind  and  body  feed  and  depend 
for  health,  strength,  light,  power,  wisdom  and  life  it- 
self—do you  think  any  advance  made  in  medicine  or 
surgery,  in  intellectual  accumulation,  in  inventive  gen- 
ius, in  creations  for  self  gratification,  in  artificial 
practices  for  spiritual  development,  can  keep  pace  with 
the  destruction  wrought  upon  the  very  essence  of  your 
TDeing? 

Going  back  to  the  days  of  savagery  and  following 
along  up  through  the  different  stages  of  barbarism  and 
civilization,  the  differences  lie  not  so  much  in  the  moral 
•status  of  society,  or  the  amount  -of  evil  extant,  as  in 
the  crudity  and  fineness  of  the  methods  pursued.  So 
far  as  the  potency  of  evil  is  concerned,  the  differences 
are  in  favor  of  the  more  primitive  states.  The  civilized 
man  has  polished  up  his  exterior  and  glossed  over  the 
reflected  ugliness  of  his  savage  mind— but  he  is  a 
vvhited  sepulcher.  Active  in  the  heart  and  mind  of  the 
twentieth  century  are  all  the  evils  and  passions  of  every 
l^nown  age.  While  many  grosser  forms  of  evil  have 
passed  away,  man  has,  step  by  step,  learned  to  use  his 
mind  to  further  his  selfish  ends  and  to  gratify  his  more 
•and  more  complex  desires,  until  he  has  developed  an 
intellect  which  has  taught  him  the  use  of  finer  methods 
and  subtler  forces;  giving  into  his  hands  greater  power 
to  do  evil  than  ever  befora 

Our  forefathers  slew  people  indiscriminately  with 
crude  and  deadly  weapons— today  the  power  of  gold  is 
manipulated  to  subsidize  the  laws  in  such  a  way  that 
Tnillions  of  people  are  forced  into  conditions  in  which 


36  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

they  are  daily  dying  of  excessive  toil,  starvation  and 
exposure.  While  those  who  live  in  the  so-called  high 
places  and  hold  the  reins  of  temporal  power  are  playing 
with  sharp-edged  tools,  no  less  destructive  than  those 
that  caused  the  downfall  of  nations,  cities  and  powers 
of  the  past. 

Even  were  it  possible  to  consider  all  the  past  and 
present  phases  of  earthly  conditions,  no  one  could  accu- 
rately estimate  whether,  on  the  whole,  evil  has  in- 
creased or  decreased  during  the  long  ages  of  its  fluctu- 
ations. But,  comparing  man's  progress  with  the  possi- 
bilities of  natural  growth ;— while  he  has  gained  in 
temporal  power,  he  has  lost  in  the  real  power  vested  in 
himself ;  while  he  has  gained  in  intellect  and  super- 
ficial knowledge,  he  has  lost  in  intelligence  and  wis- 
dom ;  while  he  has  advanced  in  mechanical  ingenuity, 
he  has  lost  in  the  intensity  of  his  senses  and  brilliancy 
of  his  faculties  ;  while  he  has  found  remedies  for  some 
of  his  deficiencies,  he  has  forgotten  how  to  prevent 
them ;  while  he  has  innumerable  ways  to  gratify  his 
desires,  he  has  lost  the  key  to  happiness  ;  and  with  all 
his  boasted  gain  of  whatever  kind,  he  has  lost  the 
consciousness  of  even  the  possibility  of  living  to  the 
standard  of  a  perfected  human  nature,  which  standard 
is  only  the  first  step  toward  an  exalted  individuality. 

That  humanity  has  made  any  moral  or  spiritual 
advancement  is  not  due  to  the  processes  of  civilization, 
but  to  the  fact  that  the  higher  attributes  which  ennoble 
nature  and  beautify  character  have  not  been  permitted 


THE  SPIRIT  37 

to  sink  from  view.  They  have  been  preserved  and 
exemphfied  by  the  great  ones  who  have  for  this  purpose 
been  born  from  time  to  time,  looking  as  far  back  as 
history  reaches ;  and  who  have,  in  spite  of  the  density 
of  earth  conditions,  been  able  to  preserve  their  light 
and  to  leave  an  indelible  influence  upon  the  world. 
The  mistake  that  has  been  made  is  that  these  great 
ones  have  been  regarded  as  beings  especially  endowed 
and  essentially  different  from  the  rest  of  humanity, 
while  it  was  intended  that  their  lives  should  be  exam- 
ples, and  that  the  results  obtained  by  them  should  be 
realized  by  all  who  would  learn  and  live  their  precepts. 
The  time  is  coming  when  no  individual  shall  be  per- 
mitted to  cloak  his  weaknesses  under  such  sophistry  as 
this.  The  law  will  be  given  forth  simply,  clearly  and 
unmistakably  to  all;  and  the  rapidly  increasing  hard- 
ships and  suffering  of  the  masses  will  tend  to  make  the 
people  listen;  until  with  the  lash  of  the  world  on  one 
■side,  and  the  light  that  shines  on  the  straight  and 
narrow  path  on  the  other,  many  will  choose  to  enter, 
and  none  shall  escape  the  penalty  of  knowing  and  not 
doing. 

It  is  not  sufiicient  to  comprehend  all  that  is  comprised 
in  the  law;  it  must  be  as  fully  lived  as  comprehended. 
Neither  can  you  half  understand  and  half  live,  nor  fully 
understand  and  partly  live.  Even  though  you  have 
fulfilled  all  the  requirements,  save  one,  you  are  not 
trustworthy,  for  through  that  weakness  you  may  be  led 
into  darkness  and  confusion.  Always  is  man  faced 
with  the  inexorable  law.     He  must  either  cease  from 


38  THE   PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

the  gratification  of  his  desires  and  the  committing  of 
other  destructive  errors,  and  begin  the  disentangle- 
ment of  his  fettered  being;  or  continue  in  these  things 
and  plunge  more  deeply  into  the  abyss.  There  is  no 
salvation  on  the  earth  plane,  nor  on  any  other,  save 
through  straightening  out  the  distorted  nature. 

One  who  has  built  into  his  character  all  the  require- 
ments for  progression  stands  perfected  on  this  plane, 
but  there  are  heights  undreamed  of,  beyond  this  vale  of 
tears,  for  which  the  one  thus  purified  is  but  prepared 
to  enter. 

In  addition  to  other  errors  already  defined,  the  pro- 
gressive spirit  must  entirely  abstain  from  ambition; 
pride  and  vanity;  selfishness  and  covetousness;  envy, 
jealousy  and  suspicion;  discontent  and  fault-finding; 
fear  and  anxiety;  irritability,  touchiness,  anger,  hatred 
and  revenge;  criticism,  condemnation,  gossip  and 
slander;  carelessness,  recklessness  and  destructiveness; 
interference  in  the  affairs  of  others,  except  where  duty 
calls,  and  the  over-doing  of  duty;  inquisitiveness,  curi- 
osity arid  gaining  useless  knowledge;  wrong  desires, 
indulgence,  habits  and  passions;  gluttony  and  sloth; 
arguments  and  contentions;  deceit  and  hypocrisy;  sad- 
ness, melancholy  and  peevishness;  and  brooding  over 
the  past  and  anxiety  for  the  future. 

We  shall  now  follow  with  a  detailed  analysis  of  the 
foregoing  false  characteristics  which  belong  more  parti- 
cularly to  the  spiritual  organism,  but  involve  the  whole 
of  human  nature. 


INSTRUCTION   VI 


REASON 


TT  is  our  purpose  in  analyzing  the  destructive  forces, 
■^  which  are  operating  in  the  Hfe  of  man,  to  show  their 
action  and  just  why  they  should  be  eliminated.  It  is 
not  sufficient  to  say  "Thou  shalt  not"  unless  the  reason 
is  shown  for  such  command. 

Reason  is  a  natural  faculty  and  when  officiating  in 
conjunction  with  sense  perceptions,  it  is  the  comprehen- 
sion of  the  correct  relation  between  cause  and  effect. 

When  one  sees,  feels,  tastes,  smells  or  sounds  an  ob- 
ject, one  knows  its  qualifications  within  the  limit  of  the 
cognition  of  the  senses  used.  Applying  this  generally 
on  all  three  planes,  in  the  degree  that  one's  senses  are 
keen  and  comprehensive  does  his  knowledge  grow. 
Information  gained  in  any  other  way  is  guess  work 
and  valueless.  As  the  senses  and  perceptive  faculties 
have  degenerated  with  succeeding  generations  of  per- 
verted life,  comprehension  has  become  limited  and 
reason  sluggish.  Because  of  this,  man  is  confronted  on 
every  side  with  things  he  does  not  understand,  and  as 
a  way  out,  he  has  invented  the  process  of  abstract 
reasoning.     Reasoning  separate  and  apart  from  the  ap- 


40  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

plication  of  the  senses  to  concrete  facts— or  the  process 
of  following  a  logical  line  of  thought  from  an  abstract 
premise  to  a  conclusion,  is  an  artificial  method  of  gain- 
ing knowledge  which  results  not  only  in  inaccuracy, 
but  in  the  compounding  of  misconceptions  to  which  the 
distortions  of  human  life  are  largely  due. 

A  boy  needs  no  abstract  mental  calculation  to  tell  him 
that  a  ball  will  hit  the  object  at  which  he  directly 
throws,  or  that  if  it  does  not  hit,  he  did  not  correctly 
aim.  He  simply  looks,  sees  and  knows.  Had  man  de- 
veloped properly,  so  it  would  have  been  with  all  of  the 
phenomena  of  nature.  Their  operations  and  relations, 
causes  and  effects  would  have  been  unable  to  resist  his 
powers  of  penetration. 

Scientific  research,  though  limited,  is  along  the  right 
line  and  therefore,  it  is  revealing  many  of  nature's 
secrets.  It  may  finally  do  its  part  toward  throwing 
light  on  the  necessity  of  living  the  higher  life.  Unless 
it  does  this,  its  mission  is  not  complete  and  all  its  reve- 
lations are  null  and  void. 

As  humanity  stands  today  after  ages  of  artificial  cult- 
ure, its  knowledge  is  most  meager.  Man  has  strayed  so 
far  from  nature  that  nature  is  almost  forgotten  and  less 
understood.  Regarding  earth  conditions,  and  his  part 
in  creating  them,  man  has  little  insight.  Of  the  nature 
of  human  characteristics  and  their  consequences,  he  is 
for  the  most  part  unconscious.  He  has  even  lost  the 
finer  distinction  between  right  and  wrong.  Had  the 
development  of  the  subtler  faculties  of  insight  and  dis- 
crimination not  been  prevented,  all  these  things  would 


REASON  41 

have  been  known  at  a  glance— in  fact,  man  would 
never  have  become  involved.  That  he  is  involved  and 
does  not  comprehend  is  proven  in  this,  that  he  suffers 
without  power  to  prevent  it.  He  constantly  struggles 
with  results  and  has  no  eyes  with  which  to  see  the 
causes. 

The  power  of  analysis  is  a  faculty  which  the  mind 
has  developed  for  the  purpose  of  rending  the  veil  which 
envelopes  its  clear  vision.  Because  analysis  deals  with 
facts  and  shows  their  correct  relations,  it  is  a  valuable 
agent  to  awaken  comprehension  and  teach  wisdom. 


INSTRUCTION  VII 


AMBITION 


TT  is  difficult  to  convince  the  average  mind  that  am- 
bition  is  a  destructive  element.  While  selfishness 
is  readily  admitted  to  be  wrong,  few  have  deep  enough 
insight  to  recognize  that  only  a  selfish  nature  can  be 
ambitious.  Ambition  is  an  eager  or  inordinate  desire 
for  some  object  that  confers  special  distinction.  It  is 
a  desire  to  excel  beyond  other  men.  Whatever  tends 
toward,  or  cultivates  selfishness,  whatever  justifies  per- 
sonal gratification,  or  the  excluding  of  one's  self  at  the 
expense  of  others,  limits  and  wraps  the  nature.  A  beau- 
tiful character,  the  horizon  of  whose  activities  extends 
far  beyond  personal  interests,  is  broad,  open  and  com- 
prehensive. 

Ambition  causes  the  nature  to  be  self-centered,  and 
in  its  more  excessive  stages  demands  its  ends  at  any 
cost.  In  any  degree  it  is  not,  as  is  generally  consider- 
ed, an  incentive  for  growth,  but  rather  an  agency  that 
perverts  the  nature.  It  caters  to  desire  and  fosters 
pride.  It  gives  rise  to  jealousy  and  envy,  engenders 
hatred  and  discontent,  and  centers  the  spirit  on  a  low 
plane.     The  realm  of  ambition  is  temporal  and  artificial. 


AMBITION  43 

therefore,  it  is  unlawful.  Whatever  leads  the  spirit  to 
involve  itself  in  the  acquirements  or  accumulations  that 
belong  to  the  world,  or  enlists  it  for  self  aggrandize- 
ment, or  holds  its  interests  in  any  activity  other  than 
duty,  is  necessarily  an  obstiiiction  to  progression. 

Ambition  should  be  sacrificed  to  aspiration.  Aspira- 
tion is  the  motive  power  of  the  spirit  to  carry  it  forward 
to  the  attainment  of  a  high  standard.  This  does  not 
mean  a  standard  where  one  enjoys  some  distinction 
from  others,  but  a  state  of  perfection  which  inherently 
belongs  to  all ;  a  state  where  one  may  be  an  example 
to  those  who  need  it;  and  of  developed  ability  which 
enables  him  to  better  serve  in  whatever  capacity  he  is 
called  into  action. 


INSTRUCTION  VIII 


PRIDE 


rpHE  whole  human  family  is  a  vast  army.  Each  one  is 
-*-  born  to  serve  in  some  certain  capacity,  and  the  pur- 
pose of  the  whole  is  an  unobstructed  development  to 
higher  states  of  life.  Life  is  not  purposeless  ;  neither 
has  it  been  from  the  beginning  ;  but  by  man's  interfer- 
ence with  the  aim  of  the  Governing  Powers  in  whose 
hands  are  held  the  reins  of  all  creation,  the  original  plan 
has  been  destroyed,  and  the  process  of  progression 
greatly  lengthened. 

One  of  the  unvarying  laws  of  nature  is  the  operation 
of  man's  free  will.  While  he  is  subject  to  obedience,  in 
that  very  obedience  his  will  is  involved.  While  he  suf- 
fers when  his  v/ill  conflicts  with  the  power  that  makes 
for  the  highest  good,  yet  generically  speaking  man  ever 
has  his  choice  as  to  which  path  he  will  tread,  the  natural 
or  the  artificial.  The  agencies  which  present  the  idea 
that  man  is  a  puppet  of  his  environment,  and  that  he  is  to- 
day where  nature  or  force  of  circumstances  has  placed 
him,  are  only  adding  their  quota  to  the  innumerable  the- 
ories that  are  deluding  the  individual  and  leading  him  fur- 
ther and  further  astray.  There  is  only  one  way  in  which 
man  may  be  said  to  be  governed  by  his  environment,  and 


PHIDF  45 

that  is  when  he  receives  the  brunt  of  brol^en  laws. 

Man  cannot  by  his  will  change  the  laws  that  have 
been  created  and  put  into  operation  for  the  definite  pur- 
pose of  carrying-  him  to  the  highest  point  of  which  he 
is  capable  of  rising  ;  therefore,  when,  through  his  wilful 
disobedience  of  these  laws,  he  becomes  almost  hopelessly 
involved  in  evil,  he  reasons  that  these  conditions  inev- 
itably rule  him.  Breaking  laws  leads  to  a  complexity  of 
conditions  which  gather  about  man  and  carry  him  seem- 
ingly helpless  before  them.  It  is  true  that  through  the 
long  ages  of  self-destructive  processes  humanity  has 
received  results  and  the  compounding  of  results  until 
certain  classes  are  practically  submerged  with  no  appar- 
ent outlet  toward  restoration,  and  the  whole  of  human 
life  is  so  weakened  that  without  help  the  individual  can- 
not straighten  out  his  life.  But  the  fact  remains  that 
today,  after  countless  ages  of  wrong  doing,  the  way  to 
do  right  is  open  to  the  large  majority  of  the  civilized 
world,  and  almost  any  individual  has  his  choice  as  to 
what  kind  of  a  life  he  will  lead— as  to  whether  he  will 
enter  the  path  that  is  full  of  blessings  or  continue  on 
the  broad  road  over  which  he  may  be  carried  from  one 
state  of  darkness  into  another,  to  a  depth  from  which 
the  combined  Powers  of  Light  may  have  difficulty  in 
rescuing  him. 

Let  him  use  his  will  to  conquer  his  pride,  which 
causes  him  to  overestimate  himself  as  independent  of  law 
and  order.  Let  him  become  willing  to  conform  to  the  con- 
structive principles  and  he  will  find  that  there  are  many 
ways  by  which  evil's  clutches  may  be  loosened  and  life 


46  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

be  made  easier  and  better.  The  first  step  toward  receiv- 
ing help  is  wilhngness  on  the  part  of  the  individual. 
Nothing  can  be  done  until  the  spirit  becomes  willing 
and  submissive.  This  is  the  only  good  accompHshed 
through  suffering.  It  helps  to  humble  the  pride  of  the 
spirit  and  to  m.ake  it  willing  to  listen,  learn  and  live. 

You  may  begin  to  see  why  pride  should  be  weeded 
out  of  the  nature.  It  is  one  of  the  greatest  stumbling 
blocks  in  the  path  of  progression.  Pride,  or  self-impor- 
tance, has  been  cultivated  from  various  standpoints  by 
the  world  until  it  has  assumed  a  place  in  the  nature  of 
many  second  to  no  other  error.  It  has  many  phases, 
and  some  are  so  subtle  and  misleading  that  so  long  as  a 
germ  of  pride  remains  there  is  danger.  Many  have 
gone  far  along  the  way  toward  the  prescribed  standard 
and  have  fallen  over  some  point  which  has  threatened 
to  prick  a  remaining  bubble  of  self-importance  and 
which  they  were  unwilling  to  sacrifice. 

Human  life  should  be  like  a  gigantic  machine  with  all 
its  innumerable  parts  held  in  perfect  connection,  each 
serving  its  special  purpose  with  a  view  to  the  harmonious 
movement  of  the  whole.  In  the  operation  of  such  a 
mechanism  there  is  no  high  nor  low  position,  nor  is  one 
part  of  more  importance  than  another.  As  no  machine 
is  run  aimlessly,  but  to  accomplish  a  definite  result,  so 
it  is  with  the  great  structure  of  human  life.  If,  how- 
ever, the  different  parts  of  either  refuse  to  work  in 
unison  with  the  whole  and  under  the  regulation  of  the 
governing  power,  disorder  follows,  work  is  retarded  and 
the  original  plan  thwarted. 


PRIDE  47 

When  one  becomes  proud,  or  self-important,  it  means 
that  he  wants  to  run  his  own  life  in  his  own  way,  sub- 
servient to  none,  obedient  to  none,  and  subordinate  to 
none.  This  is  absolutely  contrary  to  nature,  and  destroys 
progression.  Such  an  one  may  contribute  to  the  artifi- 
cial life,  and  rise  to  great  heights  in  a  superficial  world, 
but  he  must  do  so  at  the  cost  of  soul  and  spirit  power. 

Of  what  shall  the  spirit  be  proud— of  its  ignorance, 
its  infirmities,  its  sins  or  its  sorrows?  Shall  one  be 
proud  of  obedience  to  the  laws  of  nature  which  develops 
an  exalted  and  beautiful  life?  The  latter  comprehends 
all  that  is  of  real  and  permanent  value  on  any  plane,  but 
to  be  proud  of  it  presents  an  impossible  paradox.  As 
humility,  simplicity,  obedience  and  submissiveness  are 
necessary  soil  to  growth,  so  pride  must  be  the  antipodes 
of  progression. 

Shall  one  be  proud  of  any  earthly  possession?  Be  it 
wealth,  fame  or  power,  it  lasts  but  for  a  day,  and  adds 
nothing  to  the  permanent  welfare  of  the  individual. 
Furthermore,  when  one  becomes  proud  over  these  things 
they  only  serve  to  intoxicate  the  spirit  and  darken  it 
the  more. 

Life  ever  has  been,  and  is  now.  so  crowded  with 
examples  of  the  rise  and  fall  of  nations,  cities,  institu- 
tions and  individuals  that  it  is  not  necessary  to  long 
dwell  upon  this  point  to  insure  its  recognition.  Nations 
carry  their  temporal  power  to  tremendous  heights,  until 
they  fall  by  the  weight  of  their  own  errors.  These 
errors  are  blindly  builded  into  their  walls,  and  upon 
them  the  structures  rest.     The  only  solid   foundation 


48  THE   PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

upon  which  any  nation  can  stand,  and  the  only  material 
out  of  which  it  can  permanently  build,  is  the  flawless 
character  of  its  ruling  elements. 

Cities  of  the  past  have  been  builded  to  the  utmost  of 
the  artificial  ability  of  the  period  in  which  they  flourished; 
yet  many  of  them  lie  buried  deep  beneath  the  feet  of 
modern  civilization,  and  serve  only  as  a  foundation  for 
the  cities  of  today.  These  cities,  in  turn,  though  won- 
derful in  structural  magnifience,  are  none  the  less  sub- 
ject to  destruction  and  decay.  Let  us  come  closer  home 
for  an  illustration :  Yesterday  there  stood  a  modern 
city,  rapidly  increasing  in  her  wealth,  beauty  and  power, 
proudly  rearing  her  gigantic  structures  against  the  set- 
ting sun,  and  looking  out  through  the  Golden  Gate  to 
the  remotest  points  of  the  earth,  scarcely  one  of  these 
points  being  untouched  by  her  influence.  One  stroke  of 
nature— which  no  man  fully  comprehends— and  she  fell 
prostrate  in  the  midst  of  her  glory!  The  indomitable 
spirit  of  man  once  more  arises  to  rebuild,  even  as  he  has 
done  all  through  the  past  ages,  and  thus  he  will  do  so  long 
as  the  world  endures— but  he  cannot  escape  the  lessons 
taught  by  the  repeated  destruction  of  his  handiwork. 

So  far  as  the  greatness  of  individuals  is  concerned, 
they  whose  work  has  been  worthy  and  whose  names 
have  lived  beyond  the  hour,  have  been  those  who  have 
forgotten  and  sacrificed  themselves  for  some  great  ser- 
vice to  humanity. 

Why,  then,  blast  your  nature  by   self-inflation  over 

things  held   by  an  ephemeral   world?    Grasp  them  as 

ou  will,  they  may  be  taken  from  you  at  any  moment. 


PRIDE  49 

At  best,  earth  life  is  but  a  short  period  ;  why  waste  it 
in  trifles,  and  neglect  to  utilize  the  mighty  forces  which 
not  only  bring  peace  and  happiness  to  you  here,  but 
accrue  to  your  eternal  well-being  ? 

There  is  another  aspect  to  this  question  of  pride  which 
needs  special  attention,  and  which  seems  to  be  opposite  to 
self-importance,  but  it  is  only  the  negative  side  of  the 
same  thing.  Self-depreciation  is  a  subtle  form  of  pride. 
Whenever  one  is  cringing  or  servile,  or  feels  ashamed 
of  his  environment,  of  his  work,  or  of  any  condition  in 
which  he  is  placed — unless  he  is  thereby  connected 
with  that  which  is  destructive  to  character — he  is  yield- 
ing to  self-depreciation  and  jeopardizing  his  self-respect. 
One  should  be  quite  as  careful  to  preserve  his  self- 
respect  as  to  be  truly  humble.  Self-importance  is  not 
self-respect,  neither  is  humility  self-depreciation. 
Self-importance  throws  the  nature  out  of  balance  through 
overestimation  ;  self-depreciation  throws  the  nature  out 
of  balance  through  underestimation. 

Do  right  in  thought,  word  and  deed,  and,  whatever 
your  position  in  life,  be  independent  of  the  opinions  of 
others.  Only  one  who  is  inferior  yields  to  public  opinion. 
Whether  public  opinion  is  on  the  side  of  right  or  wrong, 
you  should  be  influenced  by  something  much  higher  than 
its  criticism.  Do  right  at  all  times  because  it  is  your 
nature  to  do  so,  and  because  it  is  the  only  path  that  leads 
to  higher  and  better  things.  Public  opinion  is  fluctuating, 
unsatisfactory  and  absolutely  valueless  to  one  who  is 
progressing.    To  that  which  is  temporal  and  superficial  it 


50  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

gives  first  place,  while  that  which  is  of  real  and  perma- 
nent value  it  sinks  into  obscurity. 

Any  person— or  number  of  persons— who  represents  a 
principle  beyond  the  current  ideas  of  the  day  must  defy 
public  opinion  and  face  the  ridicule  and  persecution 
born  of  ignorance  and  attendant  intolerance.  To  do 
right  and  fear  nothing  is  the  attitude  that  is  necessary 
for  one  who  disagrees  with  the  world.  To  agree  with 
the  world  means  to  sink  to  its  plane.  To  espouse  a 
cause  that  opposes  the  world  means  to  stand  firm  and 
unyielding  to  any  pressure  it  may  bring  to  bear,  indif- 
ferent to  either  its  praise  or  blame.  One  who  has  not 
learned  to  look  closely  and  see  clearly  may  not  realize  to 
what  extent  simply  doing  right  will  antagonize  the 
world.  Begin  today,  in  the  midst  of  your  own  surround- 
ings, to  do  right ;  simply  cease  to  do  the  things  herein 
delineated  as  belonging  to  a  false  and  artificial  life  ;  also 
demand  that  others  do  right  so  far  as  their  dealings  with 
you  are  concerned,  and  see  what  a  commotion  you  will 
cause.  Right  here  will  come  your  opportunity  to  humble 
yourself  ;  for  you  may  have  to  take  steps  through  which 
you  will  be  utterly  shorn  of  the  things  which  the  world 
holds  in  high  repute.  What  it  will  cost  you  to  do  right 
will  depend  entirely  upon  hov^  much  you  have  in  your 
life  that  has  been  illegitim.ately  gained,  and  how  great 
a  value  you  place  upon  it. 

If  you  have  lived  such  a  life  as  to  richly  feed,  clothe 
and  surround  the  body  with  the  things  that  gratify  the 
senses  and  cultivate  desires,  it  has  necessarily  been  at 
the  expense  of  the  life  forces  or  soul,  upon  which  the 


PRIDE  51 

spirit  depends  for  growth.  It  inevitably  follows  that  if 
you  would  live  the  life  which  richly  feeds  and  clothes 
the  spirit,  those  things  by  which  the  spirit  has  been  de- 
nuded must  be  sacrificed.  To  do  right  in  thought,  word 
and  deed  means  to  enrich  the  soul,  clothe  the  spirit  and 
illuminate  the  life.  To  do  wrong  means  to  impoverish 
the  soul  and  leave  the  spirit  naked.  For  one  to  spend 
a  lifetime  in  wasting  life  forces— which  are  constantly 
being  collected  by  the  body— in  merely  intellectual  or 
material  pursuits  means  that  when  death  comes  the 
spirit  has  lost  the  opportunity  given  by  a  life  in  the 
physical  body,  and  it  goes  out  without  a  soul,  with  no 
means  of  its  own  of  being  nourished,  clothed  or  pro- 
tected. 

We  must  not  be  construed  to  mean  that  man  should 
make  no  effort  for  that  which  is  necessary  to  the  suste- 
nance, health  and  usefulness  of  material  life,  but  that 
effort  must  always  be  consistent  with  honesty  and  up- 
rightness of  character.  If  your  position,  viewed  from 
the  standpoint  of  the  ambitious,  is  an  exalted  one,  but 
interferes  with  your  progression,  you  must  either  sacri- 
fice your  position  or  your  progression.  If  your  position 
is  lowly  and  obscure,  but  legitimate  and  in  no  wise  con- 
flicts with  the  fulfilling  of  your  aspirations,  then  be  con- 
tent and  thankful.  Make  the  most  of  every  opportunity, 
however  small,  develop  your  ability  in  whatever  you  are 
doing,  and  you  will  not  only  be  richly  blessed  in  this 
life,  but  that  which  you  gain  will  be  of  the  utmost  value 
to  you  as  you  pass  from  plane  to  plane.     Whether  your 


52  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

position  be  high  or  low,  measured  by  worldly  standards, 
does  not  signify,  but  your  attitude  toward  it  is  of  great 
importance. 

There  is,  in  the  Progressive  Life,  no  room  for  self- 
exaltation  or  self-depreciation.  Be  content  to  be  yourself 
whether  that  self  be  greator  small.  Be  subservient  to 
to  no  one's  opinion,  nor  allow  yourself  to  be  influenced 
by  any  one's  criticism.  Be  humble,  sweet  and  obedient 
to  duty,  and  go  steadily  on  to  the  fruition  of  your  life's 
work,  whatever  you  find  it  to  be. 


INSTRUCTION    IX 


VANITY 


T  TANITY  is  another  phase  of  pride.  Generally  speak- 
^  ing,  it  may  be  said  to  be  an  extreme  stage  of  self- 
importance;  therefore,  its  destructive  action  is  at  once 
apparent.  It  is  in  connection  with  the  more  common 
use  of  the  word,  with  special  reference  to  personal  ap- 
pearance, that  we  have  something-  to  say. 

As  apparently  superficial  as  are  appearances,  they  are 
given  a  place  of  tremendous  importance  in  the  life  of 
man.  That  he  may  appear  well  before  the  world,  forms 
a  major  part  of  man's  motive  power  to  action.  Society 
does  not  ask  after  the  character  of  its  devotee:  nor 
trace  his  antecedents  to  ascertain  their  standard  of 
right  or  wrong  doing— but  the  question  is,  does  he  come 
from  a  family  who  has  been  well  stationed  politically, 
intellectually  and  above  all  things  financially?  To  be 
sure,  no  blatant  crime  may  be  tolerated  in  the  family 
tree  closer  than  a  couple  of  generations  back;  but  much 
may  be  forgiven  and  forgotten,  which,  —on  the  ground 
of  decency  would  ostracize  the  individual. — pro\iding 
he  carries  a  polished  exterior  and  his  golden  mantle  is 
thick  enough  to  hide  the  impurities  of  his  nature. 


54  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

When  we  speak  of  society,  we  do  not  refer  to  one 
class  alone,  but  to  every  class  belonging  to  the  whole 
social  fabric.  Each  class  has  its  vanities,  and  whether 
these  vanities  belong  to  the  lowest  or  the  so  called  high- 
est they  operate  in  exactly  the  same  way.  To  one  who 
is  sufficiently  free  from  these  things  to  enable  him  to 
get  a  sort  of  bird's-eye  view  of  the  whole  situation,  the 
aspect  that  is  presented  would  be  irresistibly  ludicrous 
were  it  not  so  pitifully  degrading  to  the  whole  human 
family,  and  were  there  not  caught  in  these  meshes  so 
many  beautiful  ones,  who  have  lost  their  way  and  forgot 
ten  their  earth  missions.  In  every  land  there  are  social  di- 
visions—whether among  the  rich  or  poor,  learned  or 
ignorant,  or  even  among  the  lowest  haunts  where  im- 
morality needs  no  cover.  With  all  alike,  such  social  di- 
visions are  based  never  upon  nobility  of  character,  but 
on  some  vainglorious  bauble  which  man  has  enthroned 
and  tried  to  inflate  with   some  semblance  of   reality. 

Betw^een  the  luxuriantly  environed  demimonde  and 
those  of  the  same  class  who  live  in  the  dark  and  narrow 
streets  there  is  an  impossible  social  barrier ;  or  the 
wife  of  the  day  laborer  snubs  all  of  her  former  compan- 
ions because  her  husband  "has  become  boss  of  the 
job,"  and  she  wears  better  clothes.  Ah,  lady  fair! 
surrounded  by  wealth  that  has  given  you  your  position 
in  what  is  deemed  the  best  society,  you  need  not  smile. 
Is  not  the  vanity  of  your  so  called  fallen  sister,  or 
that  of  the  laborer's  wife  over  her  social  advancement 
and  the  better  appearance  she  is  enabled  to  make,  the 
same  quality  that  renders  it  impossible  for  you  to  con- 


VANITY  55 

tinue  your  social  relations  with  the  friends  who  once 
patronized  your  father's  corner  grocery,  and  that  causes 
you  a  thrill  of  pleasure  when  you  flash  your  diamonds  in 
your  neighbor's  eyes?  After  all,  you  know,  the  day 
laborer  may  take  another  step,  and  in  turn  become  the 
proprietor  of  a  corner  grocery.  His  good  wife  may  one 
day  wear  diamonds  and  take  her  place  in  the  ranks  of 
the  best  society. 

It  is  useless  to  say  that  this  does  not  illustrate  social 
progression,  or  that  there  are  exclusive  circles  where 
the  parvenu  is  not  admitted.  Such  circles  are  very 
small,  and,  viewed  from  the  standpoint  of  a  higher  life, 
their  lines  are  as  vainly  drawn  as  those  which  surround 
any  other  class.  Nor  have  we  forgotten  the  caste  that 
has  perched  itself  on  the  pinnacle  of  intellectuality,  and 
which  grows  such  prickly  hedges  between  itself  and  the 
vulgar  herd.  Tell  me,  my  intellectual  friend, —you  who 
have  delved  into  all  the  ancient  and  modern  lore  of  the 
known  world,  —  tell  me,  whence  came  you?  Why  are 
you  here?  What  is  the  nurpose  of  your  being?  Whither 
are  you  going?  Do  you  live  after  the  demise  of  your 
body,  and  if  so,  what  then?  What !  YOU  do  not  know 
these  things?  We  shall  give  you  another  trial.  Itemize 
your  character.  Be  honest  and  analytical— how  does  it 
foot  up?  Are  you  self-possessed?  Do  you  control  your 
own  mind?  Do  you  think  your  own  thoughts?  Do  you 
know  whether  you  think  your  own  thoughts  or  not? 
Do  you  get  angry  ?  Do  you  criticize  or  condemn  ? 
Do  you  have  any  ill  feeling  toward  another  ?  Is  there 
any  one  whom  you  cannot  forgive?    Are  you  irritable? 


56  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

Do  you  yield  to  disturbing  influences?  Are  you  wide- 
awake and  alive,  calm,  sweet,  serene,  contented  and 
happy  at  all  times,  under  all  conditions?  Is  your  life 
chaste  and  pure?  Are  you  breaking  nature's  laws? 
Do  you  know  what  nature's  laws  are  ?  If  you  cannot 
pass  this  examination  creditably,  then  take  down  your 
barriers  and  mingle  with  common,  simple  folk.  They 
may  teach  you  some  valuable  lessons  about  life  and  na- 
ture and  your  responsibility.  If  your  intellectuality  has 
left  you  wanting  in  the  principles  of  a  self-possessed, 
noble,  pure  and  happy  life,  then  because  it  assumes  so 
much  and  gives  so  little,  must  it  be  classed  as  vanity  of 
vanities. 

Neither  will  we  allow  the  objection  that  such  vanity 
applies  only  to  American  society.  We  refer  you  to  the 
well  known  fact  that  there  are  permanently  established 
commerical  bureaus  whose  sole  business  it  is  to  negoti- 
ate between  American  wealth  and  European  nobility, 
that  inter-marriages  may  take  place,  whereby  American 
women  may  receive  the  honor  of  title,  and  European 
men  may  re-establish  their  depleted  fortunes,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  other  avenues  through  which  America's 
wealth  is  constantly  increasing  her  influence  over  all 
nations  of  the  world.  These  interrelations  of  all  kinds 
are  doing  their  work  in  levelling  conditions  in  a  way 
that  nature  does  not  forget  to  use,  whenever  man  gives 
her  an  opportunity. 

In  regard  to  personal  appearances,  let  us  now  give  a 
thought  toward  centering  the  pendulum.  When  any 
condition  has  gone  to  one  extreme,  in  bringing  it  back 


VANITY  57 

it  is  often  necessary  to  use  enough  force  to  carry  it  be- 
yond the  center ;  but  the  best  place  from  which  to  oper- 
ate is  just  between.  Appearances  are  not  to  be  alto- 
gether despised  nor  neglected.  The  action  here  is  sim- 
ple—make as  good  an  appearance,  according  to  current 
standards,  or  individual  taste,  as  you  can  without  any 
cost  to  your  higher  development.  If  the  appearance 
you  wish  to  make  costs  justice,  honesty  or  integrity- 
sacrifice  it.  If  it  costs  time,  labor  or  force  which  duty 
demands  in  other  directions — sacrifice  it.  If  on  consci- 
entious analysis  you  find  your  appearance  militates  for 
or  against  your  happiness— sacrifice  it  until  such  time 
as  you  shall  have  become  neutral.  When  you  are  neu- 
tral, you  may,  without  danger  of  vanity,  give  whatever 
attention  to  appearances  the  occasion  demands. 

A  good  appearance,  without  cost  to  character,  genteel 
manners  and  a  courteous  address,  born  of  a  kindly  na- 
ture, and  regard  for  others,  all  tend  to  soften  and  har- 
monize conditions,  and  may  thus  serve  in  the  path  of 
progression.  Vanity  in  any  degree  is  destructive  to  the 
soul  and  deludes  the  spirit.  The  point  we  wish  partic- 
ularly to  emphasize  is  this — it  is  not  the  native  goodness 
of  the  individual  that  makes  him  valuable  in  the  eyes  of 
the  world ;  but,  good  or  evil,  how  brilliant  an  appear- 
ance can  he  make.  Social  caste  is  not  based  upon  true 
merit  but  upon  superficial  acquirement,  whether  such 
acquirement  be  on  the  spiritual,  intellectual  or  physical 
planes  ;  and  more  and  more  is  the  requisite  being  nar- 
rowed down  to  a  mere  material  acquisition. 

There  are  individuals  of  beautiful  character  and  great 


58  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

possibilities  to  be  found  in  all  walks  of  life — among  the 
rich  and  among  the  poor,  among  the  ignorant  and 
among  the  learned,  among  the  Asiatics,  Europeans  and 
Americans.  Let  such  individuals  gravitate  toward  each 
other  and  form  a  social  union  to  which  there  is  but  one 
"  open  sesame,"  and  that  a  willingness  to  purge  from 
their  natures  all  that  is  false,  and  to  build  on  the  true 
that  remains,  until  all  means  have  been  observed  which 
lead  to  a  more  perfect  state. 

Let  such  a  society  open  its  doors  to  those  from  all 
classes  who  will  make  character  building  the  first  con- 
sideration, and  who  will  be  obedient  to  all  phases  of  the 
progressive  law ;  and  let  its  doors  swing  irrevocably 
shut  against  the  highest  potentate  of  church  or  state 
who  refuses  to  abide  by  the  platform  thus  installed. 

Such  a  society  would  sink  its  roots  deep  into  the  dark- 
est planes,  and  rear  its  branches  unto  the  centers  of 
the  Planes  of  Light,  thereby  overturning  and  checking 
evil  and  dispensing  good  to  the  utmost  of  its  ever- 
increasing  power. 


INSTRUCTION    X 


COVETOUSNESS 


COVETOUSNESS  is  only  one  of  the  many  forms  of 
desire.  Even  as  desire  was  the  rock  on  which  hu- 
manity first  stranded,  so,  in  his  present  state  of  en- 
tanglement, the  same  force  operates  to  prevent  the  in- 
dividual from  taking  action  in  the  right  direction,  even 
after  he  has  begun  to  see  what  is  wrong.  So  long  have 
desires  been  justified  and  cultivated  that  they  now 
have  power  to  rule  the  better  judgment.  So  strong  a 
hold  have  they  on  human  nature  that  they  are  consid- 
ered  even  the  motive  power  to  growth.  It  is  reasoned 
that  desires  cannot  be  eradicated  from  the  nature  ;  for, 
though  all  others  go,  there  must  remain  the  desire  to  do 
good  and  to  be  good. 

If  desire  leads  you  to  do  good,  you  will  make  many 
mistakes,  for  desire  and  wisdom  cannot  co-operate. 
Desire  will  always  rule  and  blind  the  vision  to  wise 
action.  Where  there  is  desire,  there  is  also  some  self- 
gratification,  and  one  should  be  neutral,  willing  to  do  or 
not  to  do,  as  duty,  not  desire  directs. 


60  COVETOUSNESS 

Neither  can  a  high  standard  be  reached  through  a 
desire  for  it,  but  only  through  a  wiUingness  to  be  obe- 
dient to  the  power  which  leads  one  thence.  You  should 
not  desire  to  grow,  for  that  very  desire  may  conflict 
with  duty  and  retard  your  progress.  Cease  to  commit 
the  errors  that  darken  the  spirit,  and  growth  is  as  nat- 
ural to  you  as  to  the  plant.  Again,  cease  to  commit 
these  errors,  not  because  you  desire  to  grow,  but  be- 
cause you  see  they  are  foreign  to  your  nature,  and  be- 
cause they  becom.e  repulsive  to  you. 

If  you  pit  your  desire  for  growth  against  the  desires 
of  the  world  you  will  surely  fail.  You  cannot  create  in 
yourself  a  desire  for  growth  equal  to  the  drawing  pow- 
er of  one  desire  for  that  which  the  world  has  to  offer. 
Only  as  your  worldly  interests  cease  can  you  enter  the 
higher  life.  Many  have  fallen  on  this  point.  They 
have  become  attracted  by  the  beauty  of  this  philosophy; 
they  have  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  blessings  enjoyed  by 
those  who  live  the  life ;  and  desired  the  power  gained 
thereby.  So  they  have  started  on  the  way  dragging 
with  them  their  indulgent  natures,  depending  on  the 
desire  to  grow  to  overbalance  desires  for  self-gratifi ca- 
tion. Whether  there  have  been  many  desires  or  only 
one  to  darken  their  path  they  have  fallen  back  and  once 
more  have  given  their  time  to  worldly  pursuits. 

This  takes  place  in  conformity  with  law.  The  nature 
of  desire  is  to  draw  the  individual  toward  its  gratifica- 
tion, and  it  always  operates  most  powerfully  when 
directed  toward  some  concrete  thing.  One's  desire  to 
grow  is  abstract,  while  his  worldly  desires  are  for  def- 


COVETOUSNESS  61 

inite  objects  through  which  he  expects  to  find  happi- 
ness or  satisfaction.  So  long  as  he  is  satisfied  by  these 
things,  no  transcendental  desire  can  permanently  influ- 
ence him.  Neither  can  one  succeed  through  a  desire  for 
certain  endowments  which  result  from  growth;  for  this 
involves  a  selfish  motive  and  through  selfishness  growth 
is  defeated. 

The  question  then  is,  how  much  power  has  the  world 
to  charm  you?  Do  you  find  it  interesting,  and  are  you 
happy  there?  Does  it  look  beautiful  to  you,  and  are 
you  blinding  yourself  to  the  evil  that  surges  on  every 
side  and  lurks  in  every  corner  of  the  benighted  globe? 
Have  your  eyes  become  so  dazzled  by  the  glare  of  its 
tremendous  pretense  that  you  cannot  see  the  hideous 
form  that  crouches  and  leers  behind?  Or  have  your 
brain  cells  been  constructed  to  respond  to  some  of  the 
fictitious  doctrines  which  claim  that  all  its  monstrous 
evils  are  unreal?  Or,  does  your  dependence  on  religious 
forms  and  ceremonies  close  your  eyes  and  make  you 
passive  in  its  hands? 

There  are  many  excuses  for  loving  the  world,  and  so 
long  as  one  excuse  remains,  however  innocent  it  may 
appear,  it  will  hold  you  and  it  will  be  your  master.  If 
there  is  anything  in  the  world  which  interests  you,  sat- 
isfies you,  or  upon  which  you  place  any  value— save  as 
you  make  it  serve  some  purpose  of  progression — you 
are  not  prepared  to  walk  in  the  right  path.  Finish  with 
the  world — test  its  values  to  the  utmost,  if  this  you  find 
necessary.  When  you  find  them  counterfeit ;  when  you 
realize  that  no  desire  is  ever  gratified  save  to  give  rise 


62  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

to  another  and  lead  to  increasing  excesses  to  assuage 
the  sated  taste;  when  your  spirit  sickens  with  the  emp- 
tiness of  such  a  quest,  and  you  awaken  to  the  fact  that 
over  the  whole  world  conditions  are  hopelessly  sub- 
merged in  evil ;  then  you  are  ready  to  enter  and  live 
the  ProgTessive  Life,  When  you  have  reached  this  place 
—though  the  way  be  very  straight  and  very  narrow  be- 
cause there  is  nothing  behind  you  that  can  attract— you 
will  have  the  strength  to  go  on  to  the  end. 

We  are  endeavoring  to  paint  such  pictures  of  condi- 
tions as  will  tend  to  stir  and  awaken  the  individual  from 
his  hypnotic  sleep.  Some  awaken  with  a  touch,  but 
there  are  others  who  need  to  be  rudely  and  persistently 
shaken,  while,  alas !  many  have  sunken  so  deep  under 
the  poisonous  vapor  which  permeates  the  very  atmos- 
phere they  breathe,  though  the  voice  of  heaven  were 
thundered  in  their  ears  they  would  not  listen. 

Have  w^e  said  enough  to  make  you  see  ' '  Thou  shalt 
not  covet  "  ?  There  is  nothing  in  the  world  worth  the 
effort  to  possess  for  its  own  sake.  You  have  a  right  to 
that  which  is  necessary  for  the  promotion  of  your  gen- 
eral welfare,  and  such  comforts  as  will  not  foster  an  in- 
dulgent nature.  Your  attitude  should  be  one  of  demand 
for  these  things  in  return  for  a  reasonable  equivalent, 
for  even  under  a  moderately  righteous  adjustment  there 
is  ample  for  all.  Greed  and  varying  degrees  of  selfish- 
ness are  in  such  full  operation  and  control  that  the  ef- 
fort necessary  to  supply  the  necessities  of  life  is  with 
the  masses  abnormal.  This  is  so  because  they  are 
forced  to  produce  not  only  all  the  idle  classes  can  use. 


COVETOUSNESS  63 

but  all  they  can  hoard  and  squander  through  the  many 
devices  of  their  indulgent  lives. 

While  one  who  has  taken  his  stand  for  justice  and 
right  must  not  brook  covetousness  or  the  desire  for 
anything  that  does  not  belong  to  him,  he  must  learn  to 
use  his  awakening  faculties,  to  increase  his  ability,  and 
to  be  on  the  alert  to  embrace  any  legitimate  means  to 
cope  with  the  greed  of  the  world  and  to  check  it  when- 
ever opportunity  offers. 

One  of  nature's  lav/s  is  that  like  attracts  like  on  every 
plane.  Through  the  perfect  operation  of  this  law  the 
individual  and  whatever  belongs  to  him  gravitate 
toward  each  other.  Just  as  the  body  is  by  nature  a 
magnet  to  attract  its  life  forces,  so  the  natural  individ- 
ual under  normal  conditions  would  draw  about  him  all 
that  is  required  to  complete  his  life.  Selfishness,  desire 
and  covetousness— all  degrees  of  the  same  destinictive 
force— interfere  with  the  working  of  this  most  wise  and 
beneficent  regulation  of  nature.  While  it  cannot  per- 
fectly operate  in  present  earth  conditions,  you  have  the 
power  by  right  living  to  master  unjust  circumstances  to 
a  certain  extent.  If  you  remember  to  keep  alive  and 
awake  and  lose  no  opportunity  to  cultivate  your  ability, 
you  may  go  forth  with  power  and  demand  your  own 
wherever  the  operation  of  greed  has  robbed  you.  You 
may  have  to  make  many  sacrifices  along  the  way,  but 
if  you  live  to  the  law  and  hold  your  ground  for  right  and 
justice,  the  end  will  be  victorious.  Every  one  has  a 
right  to  his  own  territory;  but  even  though  utterly  shorn 


64  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

of  his  own,  one  should  never  covet  that  which  belongs 
to  another.  If  this  error  is  overcome,  in  conjunction 
with  others,  forces  will  be  set  in  motion  which  will  en- 
able you  to  navigate  in  spite  of  the  obstructions  along 
the  way. 


INSTRUCTION    XI 


ENVY 


Tj^ULL  analysis  of  any  subject  necessitates  the  opening 
-*-  of  all  the  avenues  that  lead  thereto.  Errors  do  not 
come  into  the  nature  single-handed,  but  each  is  the  re- 
sult of  a  preceding  error  or  the  condition  caused  by  it. 
A  condition,  however,  is  always  the  secondary  and  not 
the  first  cause.  Hence,  to  get  a  clear  understanding  of 
our  subject,  we  must  view  it  by  the  light  of  all  the  con- 
ditions connected  therewith.  This  rule  of  action  is 
given  not  only  in  relation  to  the  subject  matter  at  hand, 
but  for  the  instruction  of  the  progressing  individual, 
and  it  should  be  applied  to  all  his  investigations. 

The  average  person  is  prone  to  gather  a  few  facts 
which  bear  on  the  condition,  or  to  be  satisfied  with  even 
one,  if  prominent,  and  from  this  meager  information  to 
jump  to  conclusions.  A  conclusion  should  never  be 
drawn  until  the  whole  field  of  facts  has  been  revealed 
to  view.  The  accuracy  of  the  conclusion  accepted  should 
be  so  apparent  from  every  point  of  approach  as  to  abso- 
lutely preclude  any  possibility  of  change  because  of  the 
arising  of  unweighcd  conditions.  If  this  rule  is  followed 
you  may  readily  see  that  you  will  draw  very  few  conclu- 


66  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

sions.  The  only  wise  course  to  pursue  is  to  live  in  such 
a  way  that  the  faculty  of  comprehension  shall  be  awak- 
ened into  full  activity.  When  this  is  done  one  is 
enabled  to  see  and  know  existing  conditions  just  as 
they  are. 

One  should  look  at  the  facts  of  nature,  and  be  content 
to  leave  them  without  any  speculation  as  to  what  may 
be  beyond  the  range  of  one's  vision.  Furthermore, 
if  you  v/ish  to  preserve  the  faculty  of  correctly  seeing 
and  knowing,  you  must  refrain  from  any  embellishment 
of  the  thing  seen  from  the  storehouse  of  your  preconcep- 
tions. Learn  to  look  and  see,  and  leave  the  fact  seen 
alone,  just  as  it  is.  If  this  you  do,  you  will  see  other 
facts  relating  to  the  first  one  which  will  often  explain 
the  first.  If,  however,  having  seen  the  first,  you  form 
an  opinion  and  draw  a  conclusion,  your  mind  will  at 
once  begin  to  operate  along  the  line  of  your  opinion  or 
conclusion,  and  the  modifying  facts  may  never  be  re- 
vealed; or,  if  they  are  revealed,  your  impression  of  them 
will  be  so  colored  as  to  make  the  result  of  your  obser- 
vation inaccurate. 

Watch  the  daily  action  of  your  mind,  and  observe  how 
constantly  you  are  forming  opinions  which  are  influenced 
by  accumulated  ideas,  or  based  on  current  or  individual 
theories,  all  of  which  lead  to  conclusions  and  prejudices 
which  color  the  life  and  regulate  action.  Trace  your 
conclusions  or  prejudices,  step  by  step,  back  to-  their 
origin;  then  analyze  the  condition  in  which  they  were 
conceived,  and  in  many  instances  you  will  find  such  flaws 
along  the  way  that  the  fallacy  of  your  position  will  be 


ENVY  67 

found  long  before  you  reach  the  end  ;  and,  once  having 
learned  to  doubt  the  material  stored  in  your  brain,  you 
will  more  quickly  see  defects,  and  break  the  habit  of 
indiscriminately  forming  opinions  and  drawing  conclu- 
sions. The  average  person  is  so  lost  in  the  maze  of 
such  mental  accumulations  that  he  is,  at  first,  not  only 
incapable  of  realizing  his  errors,  but  many  times  quite 
unwilling  to  have  them  brought  out. 

Here,  again,  comes  the  action  of  pride  or  self-import- 
ance, which  forbids  the  uncovering  and  correcting  of 
mistakes,  and  keeps  the  individual  in  bondage  to  them. 
As  before  said,  the  first  step  is  willingness  and  submis- 
siveness  of  spirit— willingness  to  have  every  error  in 
the  nature  revealed  for  the  purpose  of  correction,  and 
submissiveness  to  the  regulation  of  the  force  operating 
to  correct.  You  will  be  neither  of  these  things  so  long 
as  you  are  sure  of  your  own  opinions.  Nothing  can 
penetrate  settled  opinions  and  justified  prejudices. 
Such  mental  actions  go  on  in  ever  increasing  ratio  of 
errors  until  the  result  is,  the  human  mind  as  it  is  today 
—a  receptacle  of  matter  both  foul  and  false,  with  the 
few  ideas  of  righteousness  and  truth  that  remain  so 
submerged,  and  lov/ered  to  such  a  standard,  as  to  be 
scarcely  worthy  of  being  stepping  stones  toward  its 
original  state. 

If  one  wishes  to  clear  a  room,  or  a  drawer  which  is 
full  of  things  in  disorder,  the  first  step  is  to  empty  it  of 
its  contents.  This  being  done,  one  assorts— permanently 
rejecting  that  which  is  of  no  use,  and  rearranging  that 
which  is  worthy  to  be  retained.     This  is  the   quickest 


68  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

and  most  effectual  way  to  clarify  the  mind.  Eject  all 
your  preconceptions,  theories,  opinions  and  ideas,  and 
reject  all  that  try  to  come  in  through  the  old  method. 
Then,  holding  the  mind  steady,— still  as  a  placid  lake— 
open  it  to  the  reflection  of  the  untarnished  realities 
which  exist  in  nature,  and  which  will  be  cast  thereon 
by  the  light  that  shines  into  your  purified  life.  Having 
done  this,  you  will  find  that  whatever  of  your  previous 
ideas  were  based  on  facts  will  return  and  find  their 
proper  places  in  relation  to  new  facts.  V/ith  these  they 
will  conjunctively  operate  to  prepare  the  way  for  still 
further  facts,  which  action  shall  lead  to  an  ever  increas- 
ing revelation  of  nature's  treasures.  Thus  may  one 
finally  stand  behind  a  bulv/ark  of  irrefutable  truths, 
against  which  the  accumulated  but  unverified  theories 
and  beliefs  of  the  ages  may  beat  in  vain. 

One  can  receive  only  according  to  one's  capacity  to 
appropriate.  The  individual  who  reads  this  book  will 
glean  from  its  contents  varying  degrees  of  substance, 
according  to  his  preparation.  Those  whose  brains  are 
artificially  organized,  and  who  are  satisfied  with  the 
quality  of  that  with  which  their  brains  are  stored,  will 
get  nothing,  save  as  there  m^ay  be  ideas  expressed  which 
agree  with  what  they  have  already  accepted  as  true. 

There  are  others  v/ho,  reading  and  not  heeding,  will 
go  on  in  their  old  ways  of  thinking  and  doing. 

Those  whose  prejudices  are  especially  dear  to  them 
will  put  on  the  armor  of  non-acceptance  through  fear 
of  losing  them. 

Some  will  be  antagonized  by  the  presumption  that 


ENVY  69 

dare  attack   pet  traditions    universally  unquestioned. 

Varying  emotions— as  many  as  there  are  people  who 
read— will  be  set  in  action  as  the  facts  herein  handled 
intrude  on  the  secret  places  and  bring  the  misconcep- 
tions to  light. 

The  ones  who  will  receive  the  real  benefit  are  they 
who  have  in  various  ways  been  awakened  to  see,  not 
only  the  full  message  conveyed  by  the  written  words, 
but  who  shall  discover  the  interwoven  suggestions  lead- 
ing to  the  comprehension  of  still  further  facts  to  be  later 
on  revealed.  These  forthcoming  facts  will  elucidate 
certain  points  that  would  otherwise  remain  obscure. 

One  who  stands  equipped  with  the  powers  and  abili- 
ties that  belong  to  a  life  regulated  by  the  unchanging 
principles  of  nature  finds  in  his  heart  no  occasion  for 
envy.  Envy  is  but  the  ripened  fruit  of  covetousness, 
and  as  has  been  shown  under  that  head,  the  world  holds 
no  attraction  for  one  who  has  been  awakened  to  its 
shallows. 

Sound  the  world  wherever  you  will,  and  to  the  ear 
that  has  quickened  its  finer  sense  of  hearing,  there 
comes  only  a  hollow  response.  In  its  pleasure  saloons 
one  is  drawn  into  a  vortex  of  excesses  which  react  in 
the  misery  that  follows  conflicting  passions  and  surfeited 
desire.  He  who  touches  even  the  hem  of  nature's  gar- 
ment finds  contentment  in  a  pure  life  and  useful  action. 
No  special  device  is  needed  to  entertain  a  spirit  that  is 
sufficiently  disentangled  to  become  conscious  of  its  native 
peace  and  ioy. 

In  its  halls  of  learning  may  be  found  the  fluctuating 


70  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

knowledge  of  all  ages.  The  wisdom  which  no  analysis 
can  undermine,  and  which  has  stood  and  shall  stand 
through  eternity,  comes  to  the  one  who  refuses  to  use 
the  brain  for  storing  up  the  lore  of  the  preceding  gen- 
erations—generations whose  basis  of  life  and  action  has 
ever  been  unstable. 

In  the  quest  after  fame,  distinction,  position,  or  of 
any  avenue  through  which  ambition  is  gratified,  one 
squanders  his  life  forces  for  a  satisfaction  that  lasts  but 
for  the  hour  to  which  his  ascendancy  is  limited,  ere  his 
successor  catches  the  shifting  fancy  of  a  fickle  public. 
Such  purposes  can  never  enlist  the  effort  of  one  who  is 
conscious  of  the  value  of  using  his  life  forces— his  facul- 
ties and  ability — to  build  into  his  life  that  which  makes 
for  his  eternal  progression. 

In  the  ruling  centers  of  the  world  is  found  only  the 
temporal  power,  gained  through  such  cost  to  the  spirit 
that  it  may  indefinitely  sufi^er  from  its  impoverished 
condition.  The  ever  increasing  power  gained  by  the 
progressing  spirit  grows  out  of  the  conservation  of  its 
life  elements,  through  which  they  become  greater  cen- 
ters of  attraction,  thus  continually  enriching  the  whole 
individual. 

Shall  one  who  values  nothing  that  money  can  buy, 
beyond  the  supply  of  his  reasonable  needs,  envy  those 
who  have  wealth  they  cannot  use,  and  through  which 
they  cannot  gain  one  of  the  endowments  of  the  purified 
spirit  ?  Even  though  one  who  has  risen  finds  himself 
at  times  unable  to  successfully  cope  with  the  greed  and 
dishonesty  with  which  he  must  compete,  he  is  so  content 


ENVY  71 

with  the  blessings  of  the  true  life  that  he  would  accept 
no  financial  aid,  however  great,  were  it  proffered  at  the 
cost  of  the  conditions  he  thus  enjoys.  Furthermore,  the 
progressing  individual  so  quickens  his  faculties  and  in- 
creases his  ability  that  he  embraces  many  opportunities 
before  unseen,  and  uses  many  means  to  defeat  the 
agencies  which  make  living  difficult,  so,  all  in  good 
time,  he  may  find  himself  better  equipped  than  before. 

Thus  the  awakened  spirit  may  go  on  to  the  end  of  the 
world's  gifts,  and  it  finds  none  to  covet,  let  alone  to 
arouse  the  spirit  of  anger  or  discontent  because  they  are 
held  by  others.  One  must  be  thoroughly  benighted  ere 
he  covets  one  or  many  things,  and  then  grows  discon- 
tented, irritated,  angry,  or  even  malicious,  because  they 
are  withheld  from  him  and  enjoyed  by  those  about  him. 

Envy  in  any  degree  pollutes  the  mind  and  impairs  its 
ability  to  operate  even  in  the  world.  It  makes  the  in- 
dividual destructive  to  himself  and  others  with  whom 
he  comes  in  contact.  It  often  operates  to  shut  out  of 
his  life  the  very  object  desired.  An  envious  person, 
distempered  with  the  craving  of  inordinate  desire,  is 
necessarily  discontented.  He  allows  free  play  of  hate- 
ful, acrid  and  critical  feelings  which  poison  the  blood 
and  jeopardize  the  health  of  the  body,  and,  above  all 
things,  hold  the  individual  on  a  low  plane  from  which 
he  cannot  extricate  himself  so  long  as  envy  remains  in 
his  nature. 


INSTRUCTION    XII 


JEALOUSY 


TN  handling  the  different  errors  which  make  up  the 
-'-  perverted  nature  of  humanity  it  is  necessary,  for  the 
sake  of  correct  analysis,  to  segregate  them  in  regard  to 
even  their  finer  shades  of  meaning.  Otherwise  we  should 
not  be  able  to  illustrate  to  the  mind  of  the  reader  all  the 
various  conditions  growing  out  of  these  errors.  Our 
whole  purpose  is  to  clearly  show  that  the  conditions  in 
which  man  is  struggling  are  of  his  own  creating,  and 
the  only  way  to  prevent  them  and  their  attendant  suf- 
fering, is  to  reach  and  forstall  the  cause.  Any  good 
physician  directs  his  efforts  toward  removing  the  cause 
of  the  disease,  and  until  this  is  done  no  permanent  ben- 
efit is  obtained.  So  long  as  man  endeavors  to  find  rem- 
edies through  dealing  alone  with  effects  he  will  ulti- 
mately discover  that  he  has  spent  his  time,  energy  and 
ability  for  nothing. 

This  is  the  lesson  taught,  and  which  should  be  learned 
by  the  repeated  downfall  of  institutions,  and  the  per- 
sistent failure  of  reforms.  No  structure,  whether  ma- 
terial, mental  or  spiritual,  can   stand  unless  it  is  built 


'      JEALOUSY  73 

along  lines  that  insure  its  permanency.  Build  on  the 
sand  and  its  shifting  particles  will  undermine  the  foun- 
dation, and  however  beautiful  the  outline  and  magnificent 
the  embellishment,  destruction  must  follow.  We  are 
not  here  dealing  with  mere  figures  of  speech,  but  we 
are  stating  facts  based  on  stern  and  unyielding  reality. 
We  would  that  he  who  reads  might  heed  this  warning— 
that  all  who  hear  this  truth  proclaimed  might  listen  and 
comprehend  its  full  purport.  For  in  this  way,  and  this 
alone,  can  they  be  saved  from  the  crashes  that  will 
surely  come. 

Can  you  not  see  that  institutions  of  any  kind  which 
are  resting  on  selfishness,  pride  and  ambition— much 
more  those  that  are  supported  by  greed,  and  for  indul- 
gence—are tottering  on  foundations  that  are  absolutely 
rotten  ?  We  appeal  to  your  common  sense— can  these 
endure  ? 

There  are  many  props  which  are  being  and  will  be 
used  to  keep  the  main  structures  in  place,  but  they  are 
not  sufficient  to  overcome  the  destructive  forces  oper- 
ating in  their  very  groundwork.  We  look  out  over  the 
world  today  and  see  very  few  institutions,  great  or  small, 
that  can  stand  the  searchlight  of  exact  analysis.  Even 
those  that  are  organized  for  the  purpose  of  doing  good, 
while,  under  existing  circumstances,  they  are  necessary 
to  somewhat  check  evil  and  ameliorate  its.  results,  they 
help  to  support  others  which  are  false  to  the  core.  We 
are  only  hinting  at  these  conditions,  but  one  example  we 
will  give.  All  charitable  institutions  serve  to  allay  the 
suffering  caused  by  the  many  edifices  dedicated  to  self- 


74  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

ishness  and  greed,  and  therefore  tend  to  protect  them. 
If  no  man  claimed  or  appropriated  more  than  belonged 
to  him  there  would  be  no  need  for  charity.  The  earth 
and  the  fruits  thereof  belong  to  all  of  earth's  people, 
and  nature  yields  an  abundance  to  amply  provide  for 
each  and  every  one ;  but  man  allows  his  avaricious  na- 
ture to  run  riot,  and  uses  his  abilities  to  their  limit  to 
control  and  appropriate,  not  only  nature's  products,  but 
the  strength  and  ability  of  others  to  gratify  his  ever 
increasing  indulgent  demands.  Thus  every  man's  hand 
is  raised  against  his  neighbor,  and  many  must  necessa- 
rily be  vanquished  in  the  greedy  fight,  and  become 
slaves  of  the  victors  of  the  spoils.  This  has  been  going 
on  since  the  early  days  of  barbarism.  The  primitive 
tribes,  desiring  more  lands,  cattle  or  wives,  went  out  to 
take  them  from  their  neighbors  by  brute  force,  and 
then,  as  now,  to  the  victors  belonged  the  spoils. 

So  interwoven  with  man's  consciousness  has  this  idea 
become  that  he  still  regards  might  as  right.  There  are 
m.any — among  them  highly  reputed  moral  teachers  and 
philosophers — who  claim  that  what  one,  by  his  ability 
gains,  belongs  to  him.  We  would  amend  this,  and  say 
that  if  one  does  not  sacrifice  any  of  the  higher  qualifica- 
tions which  constitute  a  noble  character,  nor  encroach 
upon,  nor  in  any  way  interfere  with,  the  domain  of 
another,  whatever  one  through  his  ability  gains  justly 
belongs  to  him.  Were  this  attitude  m.aintained,  or  even 
approximated,  there  would  be  no  defenceless  want;  but 
all  would  be  comfortably  clothed,  housed,  fed  and  cared 
for  according  to  the  needs  of  the  hour. 


JEALOUSY  75 

In  regard  to  the  illegitimate  gaining  of  wealth,  the 
only  advance  man  has  in  this  respect  made  over  his  sav- 
age progenitors  is  in  the  methods  he  uses.  He  makes 
laws  for  the  punishment  of  those  who  rob  others  by 
brute  force,  but  he  holds  as  legitimate  subtler  means 
unparalleled  in  their  effectiveness,  by  which  he  extorts, 
enslaves  and  even  murders  to  inc'rease  his  possessions. 
The  old  crude  methods  are  far  too  limited  to  satiate  the 
appetite  of  the  highly  civilized  man.  The  m.embers  of 
this  TWENTIETH  CENTURY  SOCIETY  use  all  the 
finer  faculties  of  mind  and  body  to  manipulate  conditions 
by  which  they  may  wrest  from  each  other  to  the  utmost 
of  their  strength  and  power.  As  lust  for  gain  becomes 
more  intense— which  is  the  inevitable  result  of  the  pres- 
ent m.ode  of  life— and  as  finer  and  finer  forces  are  re- 
vealed to  the  searching  intellect,  all  are  used  to  fill  the 
ever  expanding  maw  of  greed.  Thus  the  forces  given 
man  for  the  ennobling  and  enlarging  of  his  life  are 
diverted  toward  his  destruction. 

There  are  many  secondary  causes  for  poverty  and  the 
distress  arising  therefrom,  and  much  suflTering  might  be 
avoided  by  the  individual  would  he  learn  to  apply  the 
principles  of  right  living  even  in  his  present  conditions. 
Underneath  all,  however,  the  first  cause  of  lack  for  the 
necessities  of  life  lies  in  the  universal  spirit  of  selfish- 
ness and  greed.  This  perversion  of  nature  does  not 
belong  to  one  class  alone,  but  to  all  classes,  whether 
they  are  the  victorious  or  the  vanquished  in  the  fight. 

Another  point  that  needs  consideration  here  is  that 
through  greed  and  general  perversion  of  nature's  laws. 


76  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

life  has  become  so  complex  that  every  individual — even 
he  who  has  risen  above  selfishness — is  forced,  in  some 
degree,  to  conform  to  present  rules  and  regulations. 
From  another  standpoint  one  may  thus  see  how  inter- 
dependent is  human  life.  Nature's  laws  can  never  be 
obliterated — only  bent  and  caused  to  operate  in  a  differ- 
ent way  from  the  original  design. 

Under  the  existing  conditions  the  best  that  can  be 
done  is  to  manipulate  the  mistakes  and  errors  which  are 
too  deeply  rooted  for  imm.ediate  extirpation,  with  the 
object  of  gaining  sufficient  power  to  claim  more  and 
more  territory  for  that  which,  under  the  circumstances 
of  the  hour,  is  the  most  just  and  right.  The  next  step 
is  to  press  closer  and  closer  to  the  center,  until,  though 
often  forced  to  choose  the  lesser  of  two  evils,  one  shall, 
in  every  increasing  ratio,  force  the  greater  evils  to  suc- 
cumb to  the  lesser,  the  lesser  to  the  least,  and  finally, 
the  least  to  that  which  is  absolutely  pure  and  true. 

As  it  is  with  institutions  of  charity,  so  it  is  with  all 
remedies  and  reforms  that  do  not  directly  aim  at,  and 
squarely  and  forcefully  strike  the  cause.  Anything  less 
than  this  only  mollifies  the  condition  in  one  direction, 
while  it  grows  to  greater  proportions  in  another.  A  na- 
tion can  be  no  better  or  stronger  than  the  average  good- 
ness or  strength  of  the  people  of  which  it  is  composed. 
So  it  is  with  all  lesser  institutions.  The  corruption  in 
man's  nature,  which  causes  his  institutions  to  need  re- 
form, has  in  the  past  reduced,  and  will  in  the  future 
reduce,  all  his  reform  movements  to  the  level  of  his 
errors.     And  all  superficial   remedies  shall   finally  fail 


JEALOUSY  77 

through  their  inability  to  check  the  force  of  growing  evil 
the  roots  of  which  are  undisturbed.  From  whatever 
point  we  view  the  situation  we  are  forced  back  to  the 
original  position.  The  only  way  out  of  the  difficulties 
from  which  man  is  striving  to  escape  is  through  eradi- 
cating from  his  nature  the  evils  cut  of  which  the  condi- 
tions grew  and  by  which  they  flourished. 

Jealousy  is  a  trait  of  character  which  grows  out  of 
greed  and  the  conditions  arising  therefrom.  In  perfect 
accord  with  nature's  law  of  action  and  reaction,  greed 
promotes  jealousy  and  jealousy  increases  greed.  If 
there  were  no  greed  operative  in  human  nature,  no  one 
would  need  to  fear  that  his  own,  or  that  which  he  law- 
fully acquired,  would  be  taken  from  him.  Nature  would 
so  regulate  all  life  that  each  individual  would  ask  for 
no  more  nor  receive  less  than  his  own  ;  and  in  this  as- 
surance he  would  rest  secure.  There  would  be  no  sense 
of  lack,  nor  dissatisfaction,  hence  no  occasion  to  guard 
from  the  intrusion  of  others. 

We  must,  however,  handle  this  characteristic  in  its 
relation  to  present  conditions.  The  very  nature  of  jeal- 
ousy condemns  it,  and  only  in  abnormal  life  can  it  find 
place.  Its  nature  is  revealed  through  its  action,  which 
is  to  clutch,  grasp  and  bind  for  personal  gratification. 
It  also  gives  rise  to  suspicion,  anger  and  hatred.  It  pol- 
lutes the  nature  in  which  it  exists,  and  poisons  the 
atmosphere  breathed  by  its  victim.  There  is  no  circum- 
stance or  relationship  that  justifies  its  presence,  yet 
people  are  deluded  by  the  idea  that  it  is  the  accompani- 
ment of  love.     Be  sure  that  where  jealousy  exists,  love 


78  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

is  unknown,  and  in  its  place  is  only  an  unholy  emotion 
born  of  lust  for  self. 

Jealousy  is  not  an  attractive  but  a  repellant  force. 
One  who  becomes  jealous  of  another's  love  or  attention 
takes  the  attitude  most  detrimental  to  his  desire.  The 
desire  is  in  no  sense  justifiable,  but  from  his  own  selfish 
standpoint  jealousy  diametrically  opposes  the  gaining  of 
one's  end.  One  who  is  the  victim  of  jealousy  will  natu- 
rally resist  the  unjust  bondage  to  which  such  jealousy 
subjects  him  ;  so  the  more  intense  the  clutching  directed 
toward  one  the  greater  the  resistance  and  the  wider 
the  breach  becomes.  Unselfish  love  is  the  attractive 
force,  and  where  this  is  not  active,  or  when  it  suffices 
not  to  unite  and  harmonize,  all  effort  on  low  planes  is 
useless. 

Watch  and  guard  your  possessions  as  you  will,  never 
will  you  be  able  to  insure  them  against  the  destructive 
forces  which  are  everywhere  in  operation  on  the  low 
plane  coexistent  with  jealousy— so  it  is  useless  as  well 
as  destructive.  If  you  imagine  your  happiness  depends 
upon  a  person,  place,  condition  or  circumstance,  and 
thus  you  become  jealous,  you  are  pitifully  deluded — 
happiness  is  born  of  a  pure  spirit.  The  more  absorbing 
your  jealousy  the  more  miserable  you  become  ;  so  again 
your  end  is  defeated.  Having  shown  the  action  of 
jealousy  and  its  nativity,  no  further  denunciation  is 
needed — it  speaks  for  itself. 


INSTRUCTION    XIII 

SUSPICION 

HAND  in  hand  with  jealousy  and  envy  stalks  suspi- 
cion, and  it  is  the  invariable  accompaniment  of 
these  characteristics.  Suspicion  is  sometimes  found  in 
a  nature  in  which  jealousy  and  envy  are  not  prominent, 
but  is  never  lacking  when  these  errors  appear.  One  who 
lives  on  so  low  a  plane  as  to  allow  suspicion  to  color  his 
nature,  constantly  scents  and  fears  evil,  with  or  with- 
out a  cause — and  as  directed  toward  himself  and  his 
interests.  Behind  every  friend  he  sees  a  foe— under 
every  act  a  sinister  motive.  Living  to  gratify  desire, 
he  hedges  in  his  possessions  by  jealous  watchfulness, 
envies  all  whom  he  cannot  surpass,  and  interprets  the 
movements  of  those  with  whom  he  comes  in  contact  as 
inimical  to  his  welfare.  That  this  illustrates  the  action 
of  a  suspicious  nature,  and  represents  an  abnormal,  de- 
structive state,  needs  no  further  argument. 

From  a  superficial  view  of  the  situation— because  of 
the  many  evils  that  dominate  current  motives  and  ac- 
tions—one might  justify  suspicion;  but  it  is  always  the 
accomplice  of  darkness,  and  dwarfs  and  warps  the  na- 
ture. We  must  make  a  distinction,  however,  between 
a  consciousness  awake  to  that  which  actually  exists— 
whether  it  be  good  or  evil— and  one  that  is  so  distorted 


80  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

as  to  expect  evil  from  every  source  and  imagine  it  where 
none  exists. 

There  is  an  opposite  extreme  to  the  action  of  suspicion 
which  catches  and  deludes  many  well-meaning  people. 
One  who  blindly  trusts  every  person  with  whom  he 
deals,  and  people  in  general,  with  the  hope  or  belief 
that  they  will  do  right,  simply  deceives  himself  with  as 
vague  and  baneful  a  fancy  as  that  which  colors  a  suspi- 
cious mind.  Neither  attitude  is  correct.  There  are  all 
kinds  of  natures,  which  are  in  varying  degrees,  both 
good  and  bad,  according  to  the  habits  they  have  formed 
and  the  influences  to  which  they  are  yielding.  While 
one  should  never  brood  over  nor  fear  any  evil,  either 
imaginary  or  real,  one  who  is  awakened  to  see  conditions 
and  deal  with  them  exactly  as  they  are,  is  many  times 
enabled  to  protect  him.self  by  foreseeing  and  compre- 
hending some  approaching  danger.  He  has  learned  to 
deal  with  facts,  and  is  sufficiently  awake  to  see  and 
know,  to  correctly  analyze,  and  to  interpret  that  which 
exists  about  him;  to  place  things  just  where  they  be- 
long—the good  on  one  side  and  the  evil  on  the  other— 
the  one  to  be  utilized  to  promote  further  good,  and  the 
other  to  be  conquered  by  whatever  means  it  is  wise  to 
use,  or  when  wise  to  be  avoided,  or  perhaps  to  be  con- 
trolled and  made  to  serve  some  good  end. 

Optimism  dazzles  the  eyes  with  the  tinsel  of  imagi- 
nary good,  and  prevents  clear  perception. 

Pessimism  clouds  the  vision   with  the  darkness  of 
imaginary  evil. 

Both  retard  progression. 


INSTRUCTION    XIV 

DISCONTENT 

WE  hope  our  readers  will  closely  and  accurately  fol- 
low us  in  our  efforts  to  present  the  differences 
between  the  artificial  and  the  natural  man.  When  the 
brain  is  constructed  to  operate  in  accord  with  certain 
ideas  it  cannot  at  once  function  in  connection  with  oth- 
ers, especially  when  such  ideas  contradict  those  previ- 
ously accepted.  This  is  the  reason  why  people  follov/ 
in  certain  grooves  without  question  as  to  whether  they 
are  right  or  wrong.  One  is  physically  unable  to  at  once 
create  new  channels  in  the  brain  through  which  new 
ideas  may  f.ow.  In  order  to  conquer  a  habit  it  is  neces- 
sary to  destroy  the  brain  cells  which  operate  in  response 
to  it.  This  is  done  by  the  will  of  the  spirit  in  persist- 
ently refusing  the  idea  or  set  of  ideas  that  lead  thereto 
and  that  usually  express  themselves  in  the  form  of  de- 
sires. One  may  have  many  habits,  to  which  desires  do 
not  lead,  but  they  are  more  easily  broken,  and  have  not 
such  perfect  functioning  organs  in  the  brain.  Entire 
disuse  of  an  organ  insures  its  decadence,  and  this  law 
applies  to  the  brain  as  well  as  to  other  parts  of  the 
body. 


82  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

Thus  you  see  the  great  importance  of  gaining  control 
over  the  mind.  You  should  employ  your  mind  with  the 
same  surety  of  command  with  which  you  use  your  hand. 
You  should  not  only  be  able  to  prevent  ideas  from  en- 
tering or  remaining  in  your  mind  against  your  will,  but 
you  should  govern  your  faculties  and  senses  with  equal 
power.  That  which  you  do  not  wish  to  see,  hear,  feel, 
taste  or  smell  you  should  be  able  to  resist.  The  spirit 
that  has  taken  full  and  conscious  charge  of  its  organ- 
ism dictates  as  to  what  brain  cells  shall  be  created,  in 
what  connection  they  shall  be  used,  and  regulates  the 
operation  of  those  created. 

The  brain  should  not  be  a  seemingly  automatic  ma- 
chine, but  under  the  direct  and  conscious  guidance  of 
the  spirit.  We  say  the  brain  should  not  be  seemingly 
automatic,  because  in  reality  it  is  not  so.  Even  when 
the  individual  is  not  in  conscious  control,  the  brain  can 
only  function  in  response  to  that  which  is  active  in  the 
mind;  and  only  that  may  be  active  in  the  mind  which 
the  spirit  has  accepted  and  permits  to  there  have  place. 
The  will  of  the  spirit  is  absolute  on  its  own  territory 
and  there  is  no  power  to  interfere  with  it.  Man  is  to- 
day just  what  he  has  permitted  himself  to  become,  and 
barring  some  inherited  limitations,  you  individually  are 
today  just  what  you  permit  yourself  to  be.  In  making 
these  statements  we  first  use  the  term  "man"  gener- 
ically,  in  contradistinction  to  the  individual,  because,  as 
we  have  before  shown,  however  bound  and  limited  the 
human  race  now  finds  itself,  its  conditions  are  all  due 
to  the  overpowering  of    the  pure  nature  by  willful 


DISCONTENT  83 

gratification  of  selfish  ends.  And,  while  every  individual 
born  onto  the  earth  plane  now  inevitably  suflPers  from 
the  long  descent  of  accumulated  M'caknesses,  still  he  is 
able  to  absolutely  govern  his  mind  and  build  his  char- 
acter to  a  perfect  state.  In  this  way  forces  are  set  in 
operation  that  aid  him  to  become  spiritually,  mentally 
and  even  physically  strong  and  powerful. 

Remember,  we  are  dealing  with  the  things  not  as  we 
should  like  them— not  in  accord  with  current  opinions 
or  belief —but  just  as  we  actually  find  them.  While  the 
laws  and  forces  of  restoration  cannot,  during  earth  life, 
produce  for  the  individual  the  conditions  that  he  would 
have  enjoyed  had  man  not  sacrificed  his  original  state, 
yet,  according  to  how  much  is  left  on  which  to  build, 
one  can  almost  be  reorganized  and  re-established. 
When  the  organism,  physically,  mentally  or  spiritually, 
has  become  too  far  disintegrated,  it  cannot  be  fully  re- 
suscitated until  such  time  as  conditions  are  perfected 
for  that  purpose.  This  may  never  be  possible  in  the 
physical  body. 

It  is  true  that  the  health  of  the  body  is  largely  de- 
pendent on  the  status  of  the  spirit;  but  if,  before  awak- 
ening, the  spirit  has  long  tolerated  destructive  elements, 
the  forces  may  have  become  so  scattered  as  to  have  al- 
most destroyed  the  magnetic  power  of  the  body.  In 
this  case  there  would  not  be  sufficient  foundation  upon 
which  to  rebuild.  There  are  many  who  will  be  found 
in  this  condition  when  they  are  brought  to  realize  the 
necessity  of  a  higher  life.  However,  though  one  is  ab- 
solutely beyond  physical  restoration, one  may  clarify  the 


84  THE   PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

mind  and  purify  the  spirit  so  that  all  waste  is  checked. 
If  this  is  done  a  condition  will  thereby  be  produced  in 
which  the  soul  will  be  restored.  The  spirit  may  thus 
be  clothed  when  it  separates  from  the  physical  body, 
and  go  forth  conscious,  and  prepared  to  continue  in  the 
Progressive  Life. 

In  this  connection  we  would  say  that  a  highly  devel- 
oped spirit  may  sometimes  enter  and  through  life  be 
burdened  with  a  weakened  or  diseased  physical  organ- 
ism, in  which  case  the  body  is  the  inheritance  of  the 
condition  it  has  entered.  It  is  not  true  to  say  that  such 
a  spirit  is  responsible  for  the  state  of  the  physical  body, 
—providing  it  retains  the  high  standard  it  has  already 
reached. * 

Concerning  the  renewal  of  health,  one  should  never 
form  a  judgment  as  to  the  stage  of  disease  that  precludes 
the  possibility  of  healing.  This  depends  upon  conditions 
so  deeply  hidden  that  few,  if  any,  are  able  to  know  all 
about  it. 

As  it  is  with  the  physical,  so  it  is  with  mental  and 
spiritual  conditions.  Many  minds  have  become  too  cha- 
otic for  self  restoration— many  spirits  too  involved  for 
self  delivery.  Under  present  circumstances  there  is  no 
help  for  them.  As  individuals  grow  to  the  prescribed 
standard,  and  begin  their  work  in  conscious  co-opera- 
tion with  the  forces  of  restoration,  many  miracles  will 
be  performed.  It  is  vain  to  promise  that  all  on  the 
earth  will  be  saved,  but  many  who  are  hopeless,  so  far 


*  The  questions  arising  on  certain  points- — here  left  unexplained — will  be 
answered  in  a  later  publication. 


DISCONTENT  85 

as  any  current  knowledge  is  concerned,  will   be  helped, 
and  many  fully  re-established. 

Directly  returning  to  the  subject  of  the  differences 
between  the  artificial  and  natural  man,  we  want  you  to 
realize  that  when  you  turn  away  from  the  artificial  you 
are  sacrificing  nothing  that  is  of  permanent  or  real  value. 
Vested  in  the  one  who  has  chosen  the  natural  life— even 
with  the  discount  he  is  forced  to  yield  to  present  ruling 
influences— is  the  real  thing  that  the  spirit  is  seeking. 
For  this  worldly  endowments  are  but  poor  substitutes. 
The  special  quest  of  the  individual  is  for  happiness,  and 
all  the  avenues  which  the  world  opens  to  him,  and  into 
which  he  endeavors  to  enter,  promise  in  the  end  to  re- 
sult in  some  form  or  degree  of  happiness. 

We  have  said  that  man's  first  false  step  was  to  gratify 
desire.  This  is  true,  but  that  desire  was  for  the  thing 
he  thought  would  more  quickly  and  more  easily  lead  to 
a  state  of  fuller  satisfaction  and  greater  joy.  This  was 
the  first  delusion,  from  which  he  has  never  awakened 
and  which  has  led  to  the  overwhelming  perplexity  of 
his  present  state.  But  even  as  he  might  have  learned 
his  lesson  in  the  beginning,  when  the  gratification  of  the 
first  desire  gave  rise  to  a  second,  so  he  may  at  any  time 
cease  his  quest  for  happiness  through  false  avenues 
when  he  has  once  proven  to  himself  that  none  lead 
to  the  goal. 

It  would  seem  that  experiences  have  been  varied  and 
bitter  enough  to  teach  man  that  happiness  cannot  be 
obtained  through  desire.  Happiness  is  the  native  state, 
and  grows  only  as  the  spirit  progresses  and  gains  greater 


86  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

power  of  appropriation.  One  can  receive  the  benefit  of 
nothing  beyond  his  ability  of  adaptation,  and  the  abiUty 
to  adapt  oneself  depends  upon  perfect  or  imperfect 
assimilation.  When  one  tries  to  take  into  the  physical, 
mental  or  spiritual  organism  more  than  he  is  prepared 
to  digest,  equilibrium  is  sacrificed,  and  general  disturb- 
ance follows.  Excessive  exhileration  is  as  detrimental 
to  serenity  as  agitation  from  any  other  cause. 

Man  knew  as  much  happiness  in  his  simple,  natural 
state  as  he  was  able  to  appropriate  without  disturbing 
the  balance  and  calm  which  is  at  all  times  necessary  to 
a  condition  of  growth.  Thus  again  we  see  the  action  of 
nature's  law  to  hold  the  spirit  in  just  the  condition  that 
augments  its  general  welfare,  or  causes  it  to  feel  the 
lash  of  suffering  accompanying  disobedience. 

The  objection  maybe  raised  that  happiness  does  come 
through  the  gratification  of  desires.  Whether  the  ful- 
filment of  desires  be  on  a  higher  or  a  lower  plane,  what 
it  brings  is  only  a  counterfeit  emotion  which  passes  for 
real  happiness  among  those  who  do  not  know  the  differ- 
ence, and  this  emotion  is  not  only  false  but  fleeting. 
The  child  throws  aside  one  toy  for  another,  and  the 
playthings  that  catch  fancy  after  fancy  must  grow  in 
com.plexity  with  his  increasing  years,  while  the  toys 
with  which  the  grown-up  child  plays  suffice  to  hold  his 
interest  but  little  longer  than  those  that  passed  with  his 
youth.  Why  then  continue  such  fruitless  search  ?  You 
are  facing  the  inevitable  !  The  artificial  man  seeks  and 
never  finds— the  natural  man  seeks  nothing  and  finds  all. 

The  action  of  discontent  may  thus  be  seen,  and  it 


DISCONTENT  87 

avails  worse  than  nothing.  However  difficult  may  be 
your  path,  yield  not  to  discontent.  We  admit  the  terri- 
ble pressure  of  the  constantly  turning  thumb-screws 
under  which  the  ruling  forces  of  the  world  hold  so  many 
pinioned,  but  if  one  will  begin  and  bravely  continue  to 
live  in  accordance  with  the  rules  herein  presented,  one 
will  generate  a  force  of  character  which  shall  make  him 
superior  to  his  conditions  and  contented  in  any  walk  of 
life. 

To  be  contented  in  spite  of  circumstances  does  not 
mean  to  stagnate  and  do  nothing  to  improve  them.  It 
is  a  tremendous  perversion  of  principle  to  claim  that 
discontent  is  necessary  to  reform  or  progression.  One 
should  enlist  his  efforts  in  a  good  cause  to  improve  his 
own  condition  or  environment— i)ot  because  of  personal 
dissatisfaction,  but  for  right's  sake.  The  average  indi- 
vidual is  so  in  the  habit  of  responding  only  to  personal 
desires,  or  because  of  discontent  arising  from  personal 
experiences,  that  it  is  difficult  for  such  an  one  to  con- 
tribute to  united  and  harmonious  effort  in  promoting 
any  good  work.  One  who  tries  to  do  good  from  selfish 
motives  is  quite  sure  to  be  governed  by  personal  consid- 
erations all  along  the  way,  and  usually  accomplishes 
more  toward  causing  disturbance  and  inharmony  than 
in  any  other  direction  ;  while  the  one  who  is  most  valua- 
ble in  any  service  is  the  one  who  is  actuated  by  a  sense 
of  duty— not  selfish  interest. 

Discontent  may  sometimes  lead  to  right  action,  but  it 
is  a  very  unstable  premise  from  which  to  work,  and  is 
a  state  of  mind  that  renders  growth  impossible.     How- 


88  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

ever  reverse  the  seeming,  contentment  does  not  depend 
upon  environment  or  circumstances.  Like  happiness, 
it  is  an  inherent  attribute  of  the  spirit.  Discontent  is 
an  inherent  quality  of  artificial  life,  and  does  not  yield 
to  change  of  conditions. 

Contentment  should  not  be  confused  with  insensibility 
or  a  sluggish,  stagnant  state.  One  in  the  last  named 
state  cannot  be  aroused  to  progress  through  discontent, 
but,  if  at  all,  through  being  awakened  to  right  action. 
Growth,  progression,  improvement,  power  to  surm.ount 
obstacles,  increase  of  ability,  mastery  of  conditions,  are 
all  embodied  under  natural  law,  and  belong  to  the  nor- 
mal individual.  To  such  an  one  discontent  forms  no 
incentive.  In  fact,  with  discontent  these  things  cannot 
be  accomplished.  One  preserving  a  contented  mind, 
whose  incentive  to  action  is  right  and  duty,  gains  light, 
wisdom,  force  and  power  which  accompany  no  other 
state. 

Discontent  is  not  confined  to  those  who  may  be  said  to 
have  some  real  cause.  It  is  undoubtedly  most  prevalent 
among  the  people  whose  lives  from  a  w^orldly  standpoint 
are  most  complete,  and  who,  being  forced  into,  or  rec- 
ognizing, few  duties,  live  in  idleness.  Useful  activity 
is  the  best  antidote  for  discontent.  They  who  keep  so 
busy  that  they  have  no  time  to  think  of  their  ungratified 
desires  are  the  people  of  the  world  v/ho  are  most  con- 
tented. There  may  be  apparent  exceptions  among 
extreme  cases  where  excessive  indulgence  has  stupefied 
the  spirit.  This  is  not  contentment,  but  spiritual  death 
— almost  beyond  recall. 


DISCONTENT  89 

So  necessary  is  activity  to  the  individual  that  we  find 
the  idle  classes,  in  the  degree  that  they  decrease  the 
necessity  of  useful  work,  inventing  all  sorts  of  games, 
entertainments  and  physical  exercises  which  shall  tend 
to  counteract  the  stagnation  and  decay  attendant  upon 
physical  idleness  and  the  discontent  of  an  unoccupied 
mind. 

There  is  a  growing  spirit  of  emulation  of  ancient 
Greece,  and  this  spirit  expresses  itself  both  consciously 
and  unconsciously,  and  along  various  lines.  It  is  believed 
that  it  will  be  possible  in  time  to  not  only  attain  all  the 
mental  and  physical  power  enjoyed  at  the  height  of  the 
Roman  Empire— but,  because  of  the  advance  of  civiliza- 
tion, to  far  surpass  it. 

This,  again,  shows  that  humanity  tends  to  revolve. 
The  worn  out,  abandoned  methods  of  the  past  are  again 
and  again  being  recurred  to,  and  used  at  the  different 
stages  through  which  human  life  passes.  Both  ancient 
and  modern  history  repeats  itself,  with  certain  varia- 
tions in  modes  of  expression.  Not  only  does  society 
revert  to  ancient  customs,  but  it  makes  innumerable 
little  circles  along  the  circumference  and  within  the 
confines  of  the  great  circle.  Things  that  were  in  vogue 
a  hundred,  fifty,  ten  or  five  years  ago  may  at  any  time 
be  brought  forward  to  take  the  place  of  present  dis- 
carded objects,  and  for  a  time  the  interest  in  them  is 
revived.  Occasionally  something  new  is  introduced 
which  makes  a  starting  point  for  another  whirl.  It  too 
will  follow  in  the  wake  of  all  its  predecessors. 

Just  so  surelv  as  each  successive  thing  has  served  its 


90  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

day,  and  sunken  into  obscurity,  to  be  revived,  at  best, 
but  for  another  short  period,  just  so  surely  shall  the 
world  continue  to  turn  on  its  social  axis  until  some 
mightier  force  than  it  has  yet  known  deflects  its  revolu- 
tions. Just  as  the  nations  of  the  past,  despite  their 
vaunted  power,  have  found  the  level  of  their  intrinsic 
worth,  so  surely  shall  the  nations  of  today  complete  the 
circles  they  began  when  they  laid  their  corner-stones  on 
the  same  characteristics  which  limited  the  life  of  the 
old. 

Do  you  not  see  that  when  an  ignoble  trait  of  charac- 
ter is  touched,  we  are  led  into  long  labyrinths  of  out- 
growing conditions  which  seem  to  have  no  end?  By 
this  take  warning,  for  the  error  that  necessitates  the 
presenting  of  such  an  endless  chain  of  facts  in  its  dis- 
cussion must  surely  involve  the  spirit  far  beyond  the 
possibility  of  delineation.  Whether  the  flaw  be  discon- 
tent, or  any  of  the  imperfections  that  constitute  the 
artificial  man,  spare  no  effort  in  uprooting  all  of  them, 
and  casting  them  out  to  wither  and  to  die. 


INSTRUCTION    XV 

FAULT-FINDING 

OUT  of  the  discontented  mind  grows  the  habit  of  fault- 
finding, and  by  this  we  mean  a  disposition  on  the 
part  of  the  individual  to  pick  flaws  and  to  complain. 
We  are  living  in  a  world  of  imperfections.  Nearly 
everything  man  has  touched  has  become  faulty.  Only 
where  man  has  been  unable  to  interfere,  do  we  find 
nature  in  its  purity.  Wherever  it  has  escaped  the  ma- 
nipulation of  the  human  mind,  the  earth— with  its  sky, 
its  seas,  its  forests,  its  valleys,  its  planes  and  its  moun- 
tains, in  their  infinitely  varied  expression  of  form,  col- 
oring, lights  and  shades— is  beautiful,  grand  and  enno- 
bling. But  the  world— the  direct  domain  and  creation 
of  fallen  man — is  in  its  best  phases  a  maze  of  hope- 
less defects. 

Could  the  fault-finder  regulate  the  circumstances  or 
people  of  which  he  complains  he  would  only  vary  the 
state  of  imperfection.  People  and  conditions  of  this 
world  can  never  be  changed  to  satisfy  the  individual. 
No  two  people  agree  as  to  what  characterizes  the  excel- 
lence of  any  person  or  thing.     Taking  this  into  consid- 


92  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

eration,    fault-finding    becomes    a    doubly    useless    in- 
dulgence. 

But  this  is  not  all;  even  though  complaint  should  lead 
to  the  bettering  of  conditions  in  a  degree,  it  is  most 
hurtful  to  the  individual  through  whom  it  comes,  and 
is  a  retrogressive  method.  One  who  is  fault-finding  can- 
not be  satisfied  by  any  change,  for  his  nature  is  inter- 
woven with  discontent.  The  only  lawful  thing  for  such 
an  one  to  do  is  to  patiently  and  sweetly  accept  the 
necessities  of  his  situation,  refusing  to  be  affected  by 
any  imperfection.  One  who  wishes  to  progress  must 
cease  to  find  fault  with  anything,  and  cultivate  a  satis- 
fied mind— this  state  must  under  all  circumstances  be 
maintained.  This  does  not  mean  that  facts  should  not  be 
dealt  with,  nor  that  changes  should  not  take  place  when 
conditions  are  not  conducive  to  the  general  welfare  of 
the  individual.  Where  changes  are  necessary,  make 
them.  When  unnecessary  errors  exist  reveal  and  cor- 
rect them,  if  you  have  the  ability,  and  it  is  your  busi- 
ness to  do  so.  Improvements  should  be  made  wherever 
possible,  but  all  this  may  be  done  without  fault-finding. 
If  you  cannot  improve  your  environment,  then  let  it  be 
an  opportunity  for  you  to  learn  patient  endurance. 


INSTRUCTION    XVI 


FEAR  AND  ANXIETY 


A  S  we  proceed  with  our  analysis  it  will  be  made  clear, 
-^"^  not  only  how  each  error  in  human  nature  grows 
out  of  preceding  errors,  but  that  the  false  nature  be- 
comes more  complex  as  this  process  continues.  As  a 
natural  consequence,  man's  entanglement  increases  in 
the  same  ratio. 

As  has  been  heretofore  described,  the  operations  of 
perverted  human  nature  must  lead  to  unhappy  and  dis- 
astrous results.  These  results  cause  suffering,  and 
because  of  suffering,  fear  of  evil;  or  fear  of  those  con- 
ditions which  bring  physical,  mental  or  spiritual  pain 
enters  the   nature.     Present    conditions,    woven   from 

innumerable  threads  of  wrong  doing,  naturally  engen- 
der an  uncertainty  as  to  when  and  where  evil  may 
attack,  or  as  to  what  circumstances  may  arise  to  cause 
the  most  carefully  laid  plans  to  miscarry. 

Involved  in  worldly  pursuits,  the  individual  lives  in  a 
state  of  greater  or  less  anxiety,  and  so  long  as  he  de- 
pends for  happiness  upon  what  he  considers  the  success- 
ful culmination  of  his  movements,  he  will  he  anxious  as 


94  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

to  results.  Worldly  standards  necessitate  worldly  meth- 
ods and  lead  to  worldly  issues.  Such  issues  are  sure  to 
be  mixed— both  good  and  evil.  In  short  the  mixed 
operations  of  good  and  evil  belong  to  the  present  state 
of  the  globe  and  none  are  wholly  immune  from  their  con- 
sequences. It  does  not  follow,  however,  that  none  are 
exempt  from  fear  and  anxiety.  There  are  many  who, 
seeing  that  an  anxious  mind  does  not  help  any  condi- 
tion, exert  their  wills  against  anxiety  and  temporarily 
free  themselves.  So  far  this  is  good,  but  temporary 
abstinence  from  any  weakness  is  not  sufficient.  The 
standard  set  is  that  all  destructive  characteristics  shall 
be  entirely  eradicated  from  the  nature,  and  no  occasion 
may  justify  their  return.  Fear  and  anxiety  do  not  be- 
long to  the  Progressive  Life,  and  the  spirit  cannot  grow 
while  hampered  by  them.  Fear  and  anxiety  cannot 
help  you  even  if  they  do  not  hurt  you,  but  they  do  you 
much  harm.  They  weaken  the  spirit,  disturb  the  mind, 
cloud  the  vision  and  thereby  render  wise  action  impos- 
sible. In  this  way  mistakes  may  be  made  which  will 
result  in  the  very  condition  one  wishes  to  avoid.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  ceasing  of  anxious  thought  may,  in 
many  cases,  be  all  that  is  necessary  to  clear  the  vision 
and  enable  one  to  protect  himself  from  evil. 

Fear  and  anxiety  really  depend  upon  the  valuation 
that  is  placed  upon  earthly  conditions.  The  natural 
spirit  is  neutral,  and  the  freer  the  individual  becomes 
from  the  attachments  he  has  formed  during  his  life  the 
more  neutral  will  he  be— therefore,  the  less  subject  to 
fear  and  anxiety.     Material  surroundings  beyond  neces- 


FEAR  AND   ANXIETY  95 

sities  are  not  important  if  one  does  not  allow  himself 
to  become  involved  in  them.  However  simple  or  insig- 
nificant one's  earthly  possessions,  they  may  be  detri- 
mental through  his  attitude  toward  them.  Or  one  may 
abound  in  material  wealth  and  because  he  does  not  over- 
estimate its  value  it  does  him  no  harm.  The  standard 
set  for  one  who  has  entered  the  Progressive  Life  is  that 
no  valuation  shall  be  put  upon  any  person  or  thing  to 
the  degree  that  any  change  can  destroy  the  peace  of  the 
spirit.  Set  no  value  on  the  relationships  or  conditions 
of  the  world.  Keep  yourself  free  and  untrammeled  to 
do  your  duty  and  to  develop  to  the  standard  of  charac- 
ter set  before  you.  There  is  only  one  thing  of  real  or 
permanent  value,  and  that  is  a  sustained  attitude  of 
keen  sensibility,  calm,  sweetness,  serenity,  contentment 
and  happiness.  This  attitude  must  be  so  deeply  rooted 
that  none  of  the  fluctuations  of  human  life  can  dis- 
turb it. 

We  live  in  a  world  of  sorrow,  sin  and  tragedy,  but  in 
the  midst  of  these  conditions  the  spirit  must  learn 
to  sing. 

When  you  have  ceased  from  your  desires,  conquered 
ambition,  overcome  pride,  and  when  you  value  nothing 
in  life— not  life  itself —as  you  value  an  undisturbed  atti- 
tude, then  will  you  become  neutral  regarding  all  of  life's 
variations.  Always  do  your  best;  then,  whether  results 
are  good  or  bad,  be  not  concerned,  and  fear  and  anxiety 
will  fade  away  from  your  nature. 

It  is  well,  however,  to  attack  each  error  as  it  presents 
itself  to  your  consciousness.     Take  an   attitude— assert 


96  THE   PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

your  will— against  the  thing  itself;  never  yield  to  its 
disturbing  influence.  Much  may  be  accomplished  in 
this  way,  but,  at  the  same  time,  the  cause  must  be 
reached  and  cured  ere  the  disease  will  entirely  suc- 
cumb. Place  no  valuation  on  anything  whatsoever 
beyond  its  ability  to  assist  you  in  your  life  of  progres- 
sion. So  value  the  attitude  of  mind  in  which  growth  is 
made  possible  that  no  action  and  no  result  can  tempt 
you  to  sacrifice  it. 
Into  such  a  state  neither  fear  nor  anxiety  can  enter. 


INSTRUCTION    XVII 

IRRITABILITY,  TOUCHINESS,  ANGER,  HATRED 
AND  REVENGE 

A  S  the  spirit  becomes  more  and  more  involved  in  false 
-^-^  traits  of  character,  and  as  their  destructive  oper- 
ations proceed  in  the  mind,  senses  and  body  of  the  indi- 
vidual, his  will  is  weakened,  his  powers  of  resistance 
lessened,  and  his  whole  organism  loses  equilibrium.  We 
see  in  the  perverted  nature  many  degrees  of  the  same 
errors,  and  these  degrees  depend  upon  the  hold  the 
errors  have  been  able  to  get  on  the  spirit  and  how  much 
force  is  given  to  feed  them.  If  the  nature  is  mild  or 
passive  its  errors  are  not  so  aggressive,  and  from  the 
currently  accepted  viewpoint  are  not  so  objectionable. 
It  is  nevertheless  true  that  if  they  form  any  part  of  the 
nature,  they  are  noxious  and  will  surely  prevent  the 
spirit  from  reaching  a  high  standard. 

If  you  are  repeatedly  detained  by  mild  or  subtle 
weaknesses  your  progress  is  interfered  with  as  effect- 
ually as  when  you  subject  yourself  to  the  grosser  or 
more  intense  forms  of  evil.  In  fact,  when  evil  is  pro- 
nounced it  forms  a  vulnerable  point  of  attack,  and  there 
is  often  more  hope  of  quickly  restoring  the  individual 


98  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

because  his  need  is  apparent  to  a  teacher  and  he  is  him- 
self usually  conscious  of  his  mistakes.  Subtle  forms  of 
error  delude  the  individual  in  whom  they  are  operating; 
and  because  they  do  not  manifest  themselves,  it  is  diffi- 
cult for  him  to  receive  help  from  others.  The  more  in- 
tense forms  of  evil— which  finally  take  the  nature  by 
storm — are  but  the  developed  stages  of  the  milder 
forms,  and  exist  only  because  they  were  not  checked  in 
their  incipiency.  It  is  not  necessary  to  enter  into  an 
extended  analysis  of  those  traits  of  character  that  are 
palpably  false  and  destructive,  for  it  is  generally  con- 
ceded that  they  distort  and  darken  the  nature,  so  no 
argument  is  needed  to  prove  that  they  are  undesirable. 
The  thing  that  the  world  is  not  recognizing  is  the 
possibihty  of  conquering  these  evils.  So  identified  has 
the  spirit  of  man  become  with  its  accumulated  weak- 
nesses, that  while  it  knows  they  are  wrong,  it  is  delud- 
ed by  the  idea  that  they  are  part  of  human  life.  Thus 
humanity  justifies  the  belief  that  the  best  that  can  be 
done  is  to  hold  the  worst  of  them  in  check,  preventing, 
their  operation  where  their  destructive  nature  is  most 
pronounced.  There  is  no  delusion  more  deadly  to  its 
welfare,  nor  better  calculated  to  keep  the  spirit  bound 
on  a  low  plane  than  this. 

Until  the  individual  is  awakened  to  the  fact  that  he 
is  wholly  responsible  for  his  imperfections,  and  that  his 
development  into  a  beautiful  character— a  character 
wholly  free  from  weaknesses — depends  entirely  upon 
his  own  effort,  he  is  not  only  a  slave  to  the  lower  ele- 
ments of  his  own  nature,  but  he  is  subject  to  all  the 


IRRITABILITY,    TOUCHINESS,    ANGER,    ETC.  99 

influences  about  him,  arising  from  similar  conditions  in 
others.  You  have  the  power  to  conquer  all  your  defects, 
and  the  thing  we  wish  to  impress  upon  you  is,  that  not 
only  do  you  need  to  attack  the  worst  features,  but  you 
must  continue  until  all  the  secret  corners  are  exposed  to 
the  light,  and  the  so  called  insignificant  faults,  as  well 
as  the  greater  ones,  are  weeded  out  of  your  nature. 

Illustrating  and  verifying  the  facts  just  presented  for 
your  consideration,  is  a  scale  of  false  traits  with  which 
human  nature  has  become  painfully  familiar.  This  scale 
is  composed  of  irritability,  touchiness,  anger,  hatred 
and  revenge— different  degrees  of  the  same  faults — the 
more  intense  forms  following  in  inevitable  sequence  to 
the  unrestricted  operations  of  the  others. 

The  nature  in  which  desire,  ambition,  selfishness  and 
pride,  one  or  all,  are  fostered,  will  so  lose  its  balance  as 
to  be  easily  wrought  into  a  state  of  irritability,  which, 
if  unchecked,  will  cause  the  individual  to  bristle  with 
points  through  which  he  takes  personal  oflFerce.  The 
form  of  irritatibility  that  matures  in  touchiness  depends 
largely  upon  the  degree  of  pride  and  self-importance 
that  serves  as  its  foundation.  Let  the  individual  closely 
analyze  the  consciousness  through  which  he  becomes 
hurt  or  offended,  and  he  will  soon  see  that  it  arises  from 
wounded  pride  or  a  sense  of  self-importance  that  is  not 
duly  appreciated. 

One  who  has  reached  the  standard  which  tolerates  no 
pride  or  special  estimation  of  himself,  as  apart  from 
others,  never  takes  offence  at  any  slight  or  insult.  His 
acts  are  governed  by  his  highest  sense  of  right  or  duty, 


100  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

and  to  the  opinions  of  others  he  is  never  obsequious,  nor 
does  he  in  any  degree  yield  to  their  influence.  The 
thwarted  will,  directed  toward  the  fruition  of  ambition 
and  the  fulfillment  of  desires,  also  results  in  various  stages 
of  irritability,  of  which  the  most  intense  stage  is  anger. 
The  nature  in  which  ambition,  pride  and  indulgence, 
one  or  all,  are  well  developed,  will  be  capable  of  extreme 
anger,  and  anger  usually  increases  in  the  degree  that 
the  will,  which  operates  in  connection  with  the  above 
errors,  is  curtailed.  When  anger,  from  any  cause,  is 
tolerated  and  allowed  to  grow,  hatred  is  soon  engen- 
dered, and  extends  to  both  people  and  things.  Anger 
against  or  hatred  of  the  most  evil  condition  or  person 
can  find  no  place  in  the  Progressive  Life.  Even  likes 
and  dislikes  should  be  checked,  and  hatred  under  any 
circumstances  is  intolerable. 

Out  of  hatred  grows  the  spirit  of  revenge.  Revenge, 
too,  operates  in  diflierent  degrees,  according  to  the 
intensity  of  the  force  back  of  it.  To  permit  a  desire  or 
disposition  to  return  evil  for  evil,  or  in  common  parlance 
to  "get  even"  with  the  wrong  doer,  at  once  levels  you 
to  his  plane,  feeds  the  animal  nature  of  both,  and 
poisons  the  whole  organism.  The  nature  of  revenge, 
whether  mild  or  intense,  is  to  directly  wreak  vengeance 
upon  its  victim.  All  errors  are  destructive,  but  those 
that  are  directed  toward  some  outside  object,  and  espe- 
cially toward  another  individual,  are  doubly  and 
trebly   so. 

The  first  action  of  this  class  of  evils  is  to  consume  the 
life  forces  of  the  individual  to  whom  they  belong.     The 


IRRITABILITY,    TOUCHINESS,    ANGER,    ETC.  101 

second  action  is  to  cause  destructive  forces  to  operate  in 
connection  with  their  victim,  and  the  third  is  a  reaction 
on  the  individual  in  whom  they  were  generated.  This 
in  a  general  way  shows  how  these  destructive  forces 
grow  and  intensify  until  they  end  in  varying  phases  of 
crime.  We  reiterate  there  is  no  occasion  that  can  pos- 
sibly justify  any  of  them,  even  in  their  mildest  forms. 
The  only  attitude  suppoi-table  by  the  progressive  spirit 
is  one  in  which  the  greatest  usefulness  is  promoted.  If 
you  are  angry,  if  you  hate,  or  feel  revengeful  toward 
any  condition  or  person,  you  are  thereby  unfitted  to  be 
helpful.  One  who  is  in  authority  may  correct,  rebuke, 
or  punish,  as  occasion  demands,  but  one  must  be  beyond 
all  possibility  of  any  shade  of  the  above  faults  ;  other- 
wise the  mind  will  be  clouded  by  the  feehngs,  and  wise 
action  thereby  precluded. 

When  we  consider  how  far  the  people  of  the  world 
now  are  from  the  standard  of  absolute  non-revenge,  non- 
anger,  non-hatred  or  even  non-irritability,  it  is  little 
wonder  that  injustice  is  almost  always  the  accompani- 
ment of  authority.  Though  one's  purposes  and  resolves 
are  to  do  right,  unless  the  nature  is  pure  the  mind  is 
not  clear,  and  correct  judgment  cannot  at  all  times  be 
formed.  All  people  need  to  learn  this  lesson,  especially 
those  in  authority.  There  is  one  class  in  particular  to 
whom  we  wish  to  make  appeal.  Let  the  teachers,  par- 
ents, and  all  who  have  direct  control  and  guidance  of 
children,  rid  their  own  natures  of  anger  and  irritability. 
As  a  result,  not  only  would  children  be  saved  from  the 
polluting  influence  of  such  characteristics  and  resulting 


102  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

injustice,  but  righteous  discipline  would  be  far  more 
effectual,  and  the  power  to  control  wonderfully  increased. 
One  who  is  perfected  in  self-control  has,  in  that  degree, 
power  to  govern  others  ;  and  one  who  has  not  gained 
self-control  is,  in  the  degree  that  he  lacks,  unfitted  to 
be  in  authority. 

In  no  walk  of  life  is  not  only  self-control  but  self-puri- 
fication so  necessary  as  in  the  guidance  of  budding  lives 
which  are  learning  to  take  their  first  steps  in  the  diffi- 
cult conditions  of  this  benighted  globe. 

Thus  the  shadows  fall  one  upon  another,  increasing 
in  density  as  the  errors  multiply  and  grow.  Through 
these  errors  the  spirit  is  enshrouded  in  darkness.  In 
this  darkness  it  must  remain  until  the  evils  that  shut 
out  the  light  are  by  itself  recognized  and  cast  out.  We 
hope  that  each  one  who  reads  these  pages  will  see  the 
overwhelming  necessity  of  conquering  all  weaknesses, 
thus  allowing  the  spirit  to  rise  to  its  true  state— ivide- 
awake  and  alive,  calm,  sweet,  serene,  contented  and  happy. 


INSTRUCTION    XVIII 

INJURIOUS    CRITICISM,     CONDEMNATION,     GOSSIP 
AND  SLANDER 

ANOTHER  scale  of  errors  which  clouds  human  nature 
and  darkens  the  spirit  consists  of  injurious  criti- 
cism, condemnation,  gossip  and  slander.  These  charac- 
teristics are  interdependent,  and,  as  cited  in  the  previ- 
ous instruction,  if  the  milder  form  is  checked  the  more 
virulent  phases  cannot  ensue. 

Criticism  is  a  phase  of  mind  vv^hich,  when  used  in  cer- 
tain ways,  is  not  only  generally  considered  justifiable 
but  highly  valuable.  There  is  some  justification  for  this 
position  within  a  limited  scope.  The  original  and  more 
restricted  meaning  of  the  word  criticism  is  a  fine  and 
accurate  judgment  of  an  object,  especially  applied  to 
works  of  art  and  literature,  with  a  view  rather  of  pre- 
senting their  excellences  than  of  finding  fault.  But 
from  this  standard,  usage  has  caused  criticism  to  degen- 
erate into  an  agency  for  unrestricted  fault-finding. 
Criticism,  applied  to  the  world  of  art,  music,  drama, 
literature,  etc.,  which  forms  such  wide  fields  for  its 
unlimited  exercise,  consists  largely  of  the  varying  and 


104  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

conflicting  opinions  of  different  individuals.  Such  opin- 
ions at  best  are  valueless.  Furthermore,  they  are  often 
given  from  selfish  motives,  and  many  times  colored  by 
angry,  revengeful  and  malicious  feelings,  on  which 
occasions  they  are  not  only  useless,  but  positively  inju- 
rious, both  to  the  object  toward  whom  they  are  directed 
and  the  individual  who  formulates  them. 

Originally,  only  masters  of  an  art  were  considered 
capable  of  criticising  it.  Today  any  individual  who  can 
cleverly  formulate  his  opinions,  however  inferior  his 
ability  may  be,  is  accepted  as  a  critic  by  the  general 
public. 

The  confines  of  advantageous  criticism  are  very  lim- 
ited. In  fact,  criticism  has  become  almost  wholly  de- 
structive. Teachers,  and  those  in  authority,  when  their 
personal  interests  are  not  involved,  may  closely  scan  the 
work  or  natures  of  those  directly  under  their  training, 
with  the  sole  object  of  showing  where  errors  exist  and 
correcting  them.  But  this  is,  strictly  speaking,  rather 
analysis  than  criticism,  as  criticism  is  today  currently 
understood  and  used.  Analysis,  used  in  this  connection, 
is  the  division  of  certain  conditions  into  their  various 
parts,  for  the  purpose  of  showing  the  individual  that 
which  is  destructive  and  to  be  avoided,  and  that  which 
is  constructive  and  to  be  cultivated.  This  kind  of  anal- 
ysis also  should  be  used  only  by  those  who  are  free  from 
selfish  interests  and  where  duty  commands. 

Like  all  habits,  criticism,  indulged  in,  rapidly  grows 
and  takes  possession  of  the  individual,  until,  whatever 
his  surroundings,  his  peace  of  mind  is  marred  because 


INJURIOUS  CRITICISM,    ETC.  105 

of  the  flaws  which  everywhere  present  themselves  to 
his  fastidious  mind.  Through  cultivating  the  mind 
according-  to  certain  standards,  the  senses  may  become  so 
keenly  critical  that  whenever  they  contact  an  object 
comparisons  are  at  once  made  and  criticisms  formed 
corresponding  to  one's  likes  and  dislikes.  When  any 
person  or  thing  irritates  or  annoys  you,  examine  your 
mind  and  you  will  find  that  you  are  disturbed  through 
your  own  criticism.  Cease  your  criticism,  and  the  dis- 
turbance will  pass.  Avoid  comparisons  if  you  would 
check  the  first  step  toward  criticism.  Why  should  you 
waste  your  time  in  drawing  comparisons  between  people, 
or  things,  or  conditions,  and— as  inevitably  follows— dis- 
turb yourself  by  critical  opinions?  Your  position  here, 
as  elsewhere,  should  be  neutral. 

Remember  that  no  two  people  have  the  same  tastes 
or  standards  as  to  what  is  or  is  not  beautiful  or  desira- 
ble. This  is  a  world  of  endless  variety,  all  created  ac- 
cording to  widely  differing  ideas,  and  if  you  allow  your- 
self the  privilege  of  criticising,  even  in  your  thought, 
that  which  does  not  conform  to  your  particular  fancies, 
you  will  not  only  make  yourself  and  others  unnecessari- 
ly uncomfortable,  but  you  will  be  detained  in  your  pro- 
gression by  trifles  unworthy  of  your  consideration. 

Let  each  object  have  its  own  place  and  stand  for  just 
what  it  is,  irrespective  of  other  things.  Learn  to  see 
people,  conditions  and  things  just  as  they  are,  without 
being  tinged  by  comparisons,  and  you  will  more  readily 
check  the  habit  of  criticism.     Do  not  vindicate  strong 


106  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

likes  and  dislikes,  and  rid  yourself  of  critical  thoughts 
as  well  as  critical  speech. 

It  should  be  well  understood  that  there  is  probably  no 
error  that  is  more  of  an  open  door  to,  and  more  hope- 
lessly holds  the  spirit  in  touch  with  low  planes,  than 
criticism.  It  leads  to  a  whole  train  of  destructive  hab- 
its and  passions.  Because  it  has  long  been  given  such 
free  scope,  it  has  become  such  a  persistent  and  insidious 
habit  that  even  after  the  aspirant  has  conquered  other 
errors  and  the  grosser  aspect  of  criticism,  it  often  insin- 
uates itself  on  his  unsuspecting  mind  and  once  more 
drags  him  into  the  mJre  of  its  own  plane.  There  is  only 
one  way  to  handle  criticism,  and  that  is  to  throttle  it  in 
its  incipiency  whenever  and  wherever  it  appears. 

A  critical  mind  not  only  in  itself  checks  progression, 
but  it  leads  to  the  more  destructive  quality  of  condem- 
nation. If  you  do  not  begin  by  criticising  you  will  not 
end  in  condemning.  Condemnation  is  a  two-edged 
sword,  which  very  few  are  capable  of  using,  and,  indis- 
criminately handled,  as  it  is  today,  infused  with  the 
harmful  elements  of  anger,  hatred  and  revenge,  it  is 
wholly  damaging. 

Because  of  the  power  that  evil  has  gained  over  the 
hfe  of  man,  condemnation  is  occasionally  unavoidable, 
but  the  circumstances  under  which  it  is  beneficial  are 
even  more  limited  than  those  which  circumvent  the  use 
of  criticism.  Had  man  not  entangled  himself  in  evil, 
neither  criticism  nor  condemnation  would  ever  have 
entered  his  consciousness,  much  less  would  it  have  been 


INJURIOUS  CRITICISM,    ETC.  107 

necessary  to  employ  either  one  to  promote  his  progres- 
sion. But  he  has  become  tremendously  involved.  It  is, 
therefore,  sometimes  indispensable,  for  one  who  is  espe- 
cially appointed,  to  not  only  analyze  the  conditions 
which  hold  an  individual,  but  to  forcefully  denounce 
them,  ere  the  individual  can  be  aroused  to  sufficient 
effort  to  free  himself.  In  extreme  cases,  when  every 
other  method  has  failed,  suffering  is  the  only  remaining 
means  of  bring-ing  one  to  himself. 

In  dealing  with  the  individual  the  greatest  wisdom 
must  be  used  or  fatal  mistakes  will  be  made.  Only 
those  who  are  superior  to  personal  feelings  or  motives 
can  receive  sufficient  wisdom  to  act.  Furthermore,  one 
should  never  be  a  self-appointed  authority.  One  may 
have  so  purified  his  nature  that  he  would  be  wholly  dis- 
interested in  his  judgment,  but  he  may  have  no  author- 
ity. When  one  condemns  maliciously,  or  to  gratify 
personal  feeling,  or  from  habit  or  carelessness,  or  for 
any  reason  save  because  compelled  from  duty,  he  sets 
destructive  forces  to  work  within  himself  ;  he  is  subject 
to  the  law  of  reaction,  and  opens  himself  to  the  destruc- 
tive influences  which  inhabit  low  planes. 

Unless  you  are  in  a  position  which  unquestionably 
demands  your  judgment  and  regulation,  never  allow 
your  interests  to  carry  you  far  enough  into  affairs  or 
conditions  not  your  own,  to  criticise,  condemn,  or  even 
form  an  opinion  thereon.  That  which  does  not  strictly 
belong  to  your  jurisdiction  do  not  touch  in  thought,  word 
or  deed. 


108  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

When  indiscriminate  criticism  and  condemnation  be- 
come habits  of  mind  it  is  an  easy  step  to  gossip  and 
slander.  We  need  not  give  much  time  to  the  discussion  of 
slander,  for  its  destructive  nature  is  so  thoroughly  rec- 
ognized that  it  has  come  under  the  limit  of  criminal  law. 
Gossip— its  inevitable  forerunner — is  considered  more 
innocent.  It  is,  however,  both  idle  and  pernicious.  You 
have  in  these  pages  been  repeatedly  warned  against 
allowing  yourself  to  enter  any  territory  except  where 
duty  calls.  This  is  another  way  of  saying— strictly  mind 
your  own  business.  If  this  rule  is  observed  you  will 
never  be  led  into  the  consideration  of  people  or  things 
that  do  not  concern  you.  Gossip  is  not  confined  to  speak- 
ing illy  of  people,  but  any  idle  discussion  of  the  affairs 
of  others  com.es  under  this  head.  One  who  wishes  to 
progress  must  absolutely  cease  from  any  phase  or  form 
of  gossip. 

The  world  is  full  of  gossipers,  and  you  must  closely 
guard  yourself  that  you  are  not  led  into  it  unawares ; 
also  that  you  do  not  become  a  party  to  it  by  listening  to 
the  gossip  of  others.  You  are  fully  justified  in  check- 
ing one  who  attempts  to  engage  you  in  any  sort  of  idle 
discussion.  If  you  do  not  refuse  to  give  attention  to  a 
gossiper  you  are  quite  as  responsible  as  though  you 
entered  into  the  conversation. 

Gossip  is  another  insidious  habit — as  difficult  to  check 
as  destructive,  and  it  should  be  handled,  whenever  it 
interferes,  with  inexorable  severity. 

So  let  it  be  thoroughly  understood  that  criticism,  con- 
demnation, gossip  and  slander  are  dangerous  forces. 


INJURIOUS  CRITICISM,    ETC.  109 

Criticism,  in  the  sense  of  fault-finding,  should  never 
be  used. 

Condemnation  should  be  handled  only  by  those  who, 
having  gained  wisdom,  have  been  especially  appointed 
to  authority ;  and  it  should  never  be  used  in  malice, 
anger,  irritation  or  selfishness. 

Gossip  will  hold  the  individual  on  a  low  plane,  and 
ends  in  slander. 

Slander  is  a  crime  punishable  by  law. 


INSTRUCTION    XIX 

CARELESSNESS,    RECKLESSNESS  AND  DESTRUCTIVENESS 

nnHE  human  mind,  in  its  tendency  to  touch  extreme 
-^  points,  finding  itself  handicapped  or  helpless,  swings 
out  with  the  hope  of  gaining  in  one  direction  what  it 
loses  in  the  other.  In  this  way  have  carelessness  and 
recklessness  entered  the  nature  of  man.  Because  these 
defective  traits  have  descended  through  many  genera- 
tions they  have  become  a  settled  fact  in  human  nature, 
and  their  origin  is  almost  obscure.  It  is  nevertheless 
true  that  as  man  has  received  the  various  results  of  his 
perverted  nature— results  which  cause  him  suffering 
and  that  suffering  to  increase— and  as  he  has  settled 
into  a  consciousness  that  evil  is  an  inevitable  conse- 
quence of  sentient  life,  fear  and  anxiety  have  found 
their  antipodes  in  carelessness,  and  carelessness  un- 
checked ends  in  recklessness. 

While  many  are  both  careless  and  reckless  from  birth, 
for  the  reason  heretofore  stated,  we  often  see  the  pass- 
ing from  the  point  of  excessive  care  to  its  opposite, 
recklessness,  exemplified  in  the  individual.  Many  begin 
life  full  of  enthusiasm  for  what  they  term  success,  and 


CARELESSNESS,    RECKLESSNESS,    ETC.  HI 

toward  this  end  bend  their  energ-ies  to  the  utmost.  This 
means  that  their  feeHngs  and  desires  are  fully  involved. 
When  repeated  failures  and  disappointments  come,  the 
mind  often  finds  refuge  from  fear  and  despair  in  varying 
degrees  of  carelessness.  Carelessness  may  take  many 
forms,  any  one  of  which  will  retard  progression. 

One  who  is  careless  does  not  properly  use  his  senses. 
He  is  delusive,  doing  one  thing  and  thinking  about  many. 
In  this  way  he  makes  mistakes,  and  destroys.  This 
cannot  be  excused  in  the  Progressive  Life,  for  if  one  is 
fulfilling  the  earlier  commands,  to  use  his  senses,  to  be 
alive  and  awake,  living  centered  in  his  body,  with  a 
quiet,  well  controlled  brain,  he  will  never  be  heedless, 
but  full  of  care  as  to  the  correct  performance  of  his 
duties. 

Generally  speaking,  a  careless  nature  is  not  earnest, 
and  without  earnestness  one  cannot  faithfully  perform 
duty,  nor  grow  to  a  high  standard.  Carelessness  car- 
ried to  the  point  of  desperation  is  recklessness,  and 
marks  an  extreme  state  which  can  only  be  entered 
because  of  the  impetus  given  the  nature  by  indulgence 
in  many  other  forms  of  evil. 

One  phase  that  recklessness  assumes  is  a  torpid  indif- 
ference to  life  and  its  relations  and  obligations.  From 
being  involved  in  the  unsuccessful  effort  to  fulfill  desires, 
or  from  the  reaction  following  satiated  desires,  one  may 
swing  to  the  extreme  of  pessimism.  In  this  state  the 
spirit  becomes  dull  and  hopeless.  Because  it  has  failed 
under  wrong  action  it  draws  the  conclusion  that  nothing 


112  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

is  worth  effort,  and  it  is  difficult  to  arouse  it  to  right 
action. 

Recklessness  is  the  very  antithesis  of  caution,  and 
without  caution  one  co-operates  with  and  invites  baneful 
agencies.  One  has  no  right  to  jeopard  any  possession, 
whether  it  be  his  own  or  another's,  or  whether  it 
belongs  to  the  physical,  mental  or  spiritual  plane.  Cau- 
tion to  preserve  as  well  as  to  promote  well  being  is  a 
quality  indispensible  to  growth.  A  reckless  or  even 
careless  nature  is  unavoidably  destructive  both  in  the 
smaller  details  of  life  and  the  more  important  issues. 
Such  a  nature  is  not  only  disastrous  to  externals,  but 
self  destructive.  An  individual  who  is  so  little  self  pos- 
sessed as  to  allow  recklessness  or  carelessness  and 
destructiveness  to  govern  him  cannot,  at  the  same  time, 
guard  his  soul  elements  or  life  forces.  The  two  things 
stand  opposed.  A  door  cannot  be  open  and  shut  at  the 
same  time,  neither  can  a  nature  be  both  destructive  and 
constructive. 

While  destructiveness  is  the  invariable  accompaniment 
of  a  reckless  or  careless  nature,  there  are  other  causes 
that  lead  to  this  trait  of  character.  As  selfishness 
grows,  human  nature  becomes  more  deleterious  in  its 
activity.  Destructiveness  is  a  force  in  universal  evi- 
dence. Usually,  when  man  finds  it  necessary  to  destroy 
to  further  his  selfish  ends,  he  does  not  hesitate  to  do  so, 
so  long  as  he  keeps  within  the  limits  set  by  society  for 
the  protection  of  any  one  of  its  members  from  others. 
On  the  destruction  that  is  wrought  in  defiance  of  tem- 
poral law  we  need  not  dwell— that  speaks  for  itself. 


CARELESSNESS,  RECKLESSNESS,  ETC.      113 

Here,  as  elsewhere,  nature  is  the  guide.  While  she 
is  prolific  and  generous,  she  is  also  economical.  In  all 
nature  nothing  is  destroyed.  Dissolution  and  decay  are 
only  processes  of  change  attendant  upon  the  dissolving 
of  material  into  its  original  elements  prior  to  its  being 
once  more  taken  up  and  manifested  in  different  forms. 
Besides  ridding  himself  of  all  the  elements  which  them- 
selves ravage  human  nature,  the  individual  should 
endeavor,  in  all  walks  of  life,  to  conserve  and  utilize  all 
things  to  the  utmost  of  his  ability,  avoiding  destruction 
on  the  mental,  physical  and  spiritual  planes. 

The  Progressive  Life,  perfectly  lived,  is  perpetually 
upbuilding,  and  one  living  according  to  its  laws  destroys 
only  when  forced  to  choose  the  lesser  of  two  evils,  or  to 
rebuild  a  more  perfect  edifice. 


INSTRUCTION  XX 


NON  -  INTERFERENCE 


TpARLY  in  these  instructions  the  statement  was  made 
-*--^  —learn  to  strictly  mind  your  own  buisness.  This 
is  one  of  the  first  lessons  needed  by  the  one  who  is  en- 
deavoring to  turn  back  into  the  way  of  the  Progressive 
Life. 

Had  man  in  his  original  state  of  innocence  not  broken 
this  law  he  would  not  have  fallen  to  his  present  con- 
dition. His  business  was  to  maintain  his  undisturbed 
state  of  mind— to  do  duty  and  to  grow— but  he  tried 
to  climb  another  way,  and  interested  himself  in  many 
things  which  do  not  belong  to  the  life  of  natural  pro- 
gression. Wherever  his  interests  engaged  him  in  pur- 
suits that  were  unnecessary  to  his  growth  he  disobeyed 
one  of  nature's  most  essential  provisions,  viz. —non- 
interference, or,  in  language  familiar  to  all,  strictly 
mind  your  own  business.  What  was  true  in  the  begin- 
ning is  true  today  and  will  always  endure.  Your  busi- 
ness is  to  maintain  an  undisturbed  state  of  mind,  to  do 
duty  and  to  grow. 

It  is,  however,  far  more  difficult  to  mind  one's  own 
business  in  the  turmoil  of  present   conditions  than  it 


NON-INTERFERENCE  115 

would  have  been  had  man  not  become  entangled.  Life 
is  now  full  of  disturbing  influences,  and  duties  have 
become  complicated  and  difficult.  There  is  nevertheless 
no  other  way.  Each  individual  who  wishes  to  reach 
the  required  standard  must  face  his  conditions  and  per- 
form his  duties,  however  arduous,  keeping  wide-awake 
and  alive,  calm,  sweet,  serene  contented,  and  happy. 

The  average  individual  has  become  so  accustomed  to 
interfering  not  only  with  nature's  laws  but  with  innu- 
merable affairs  that  should  not  concern  him,  that  con- 
siderable training  is  usually  necessary  before  he  realizes 
the  scope  of  the  application  of  the  law  of  non-interfer- 
ence. It  is  not  sufficient  for  one  to  refrain  from  intrud- 
ing upon  the  affairs  of  others  in  deed  only  ;  one  must 
abstain  in  deed,  word  and  thought.  In  fact,  the  first 
intrusion  is  always  in  thought,  and  much  destruction 
may  be  wrought,  even  though  such  transgression  does 
not  go  beyond  this  plane. 

You  have  been  told  to  keep  the  mind  still,  except 
when  it  is  necessary  to  use  it.  If  this  rule  is  observed 
you  will  not  interfere  on  the  mental  plane.  Checking 
action  here  will  keep  you  from  making  this  mistake  in 
word  and  deed— unless  you  are  not  clear  as  to  what 
constitutes  necessary  action.  When  you  have  entered 
the  Progressive  Life  nothing  is  really  your  business 
save  those  things  that  are  requisite  to  promote  your 
physical,  spiritual  and  mental  welfare  ;  or,  under  spe- 
cific circumstances,  where  it  becomes  your  duty  to  pro- 
mote the  welfare  of  others.     This  will  check  out  of  the 


116  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

average  life  much  that  has  heretofore  been  deemed 
essential. 

We  may  correctly  say  that  the  object  of  our  whole 
discourse  is  to  show  the  aspirant  how  to  cease  interfer- 
ing, or  how  to  mind  his  own  business.  It  is  not  only 
necessary  for  the  individual  to  learn  not  to  intrude  upon 
others,  but  he  must  guard  his  own  territory  with  equal 
care.  The  utmost  effort  is  made  to  protect  earthly 
possessions,  but  the  treasures  of  the  mind  and  the  soul 
are  left  wide  open  to  intrusion. 

Whenever  you  place  your  mind  upon  another  person 
to  scan  him  with  interest,  to  speculate  upon  his  condi- 
tions or  nature, —even  though  you  do  not  make  the 
greater  mistake  of  criticising— and  especially  if  you  try 
to  read  or  influence  his  mind,  you  have  penetrated  the 
sacred  chambers  of  his  being,  and  both  of  you  are 
harmed  beyond  your  present  power  of  realization.  In 
whatever  way  or  for  whatever  purpose  one  mentally  or 
spiritually  intrudes  upon  another  mind  or  soul  one 
unlawfully  handles  dangerous  forces.  Whether  this 
be  done  through  mental  suggestion  or  by  any  other 
method,  and  whether  it  be  done  with  or  without  permis- 
sion, injury  and  ultimate  destruction  will  surely  follow. 
Both  the  one  who  practices  these  methods  and  the  one 
practiced  upon  become  victims.  The  soul,  composed  of 
the  life  forces  gathered  by  the  body,  held  and  protected 
by  the  spirit,  should  be  the  undisturbed  and  unbroken 
covering  for  the  awakened  spirit. 

When  the  mind  is  carried  away  from  the  body  and  its 


NON-INTERFERENCE  117 

activity  in  abstract  thinking  or  speculation,  when  it  in 
any  way  intrudes  upon  the  domain  of  another,  when  it 
is  influenced  or  disturbed  by  being  intruded  upon,  or 
disturbed  by  its  own  errors,  the  soul,  through  the  vibra- 
tions thus  set  in  motion,  is  pierced,  opened  and  scattered 
in  the  degree  that  the  agitations  are  violent  or  pro- 
longed. In  this  way  the  spirit— sensitive  and  quivering 
— is  robbed  of  its  natural  protection,  and  becomes  more 
or  less  exposed  to  the  chaotic,  polluting  and  deadening 
conditions  with  which  the  very  atmosphere  of  the  globe 
is  filled. 

On  the  streets,  in  crowds,  wherever  you  go,  you  are 
constantly  subjected  to  such  interferences.  If  you  wish 
to  preserve  and  protect  your  soul— which  is  your  only 
means  for  growth— avoid  promiscuous  and  unnecessary 
mingling  with  people.  When  called  into  their  midst 
through  duty  take  the  utmost  care  not  to  interfere  with 
so  much  as  one  thought,  and  maintain  an  unyielding 
attitude  against  any  intrusion  from  others. 

When  your  territory  is  in  any  way  trespassed  upon  it 
is  necessary  for  you  to  give  the  intruder  to  understand 
that  you  will  permit  no  interference.  This  should  be 
done  without  any  annoyance  on  your  part,  and  in  the 
wisest  way  possible  to  avoid  giving  offence. 

There  is  no  lesson  more  imnortant  for  the  protection 
of  the  progressing  individual  than  non-interference. 

In  order  that  this  subject  shall  be  complete  it  must  be 
supplemented  by  a  discussion  of  the  requirement— do  not 
fail  to  do  your  duty,  but  take  care  not  to  overdo  it. 


INSTRUCTION    XXI 


DUTY 


rPHE  duties  of  an  individual  depend  upon  his  spiritual 
standing  and  the  conditions  to  which  he  has  become 
subject.  On  the  question  of  duty  there  is  much  misap- 
prehension. One  may  do  many  things  from  a  miscon- 
ceived sense  of  duty,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  one  may 
neglect  real  duties.  The  question  of  duty  is  largely  an 
individual  matter,  and  each  one  must  so  live  as  to  receive 
sufficient  wisdom  for  guidance 

There  is,  however,  a  general  rule  for  all,  viz.,  it  be- 
comes the  duty  of  each  individual  to  cease  all  mental 
and  spiritual  action  that  interferes  with  growth,  and  as 
far  as  possible  to  make  his  physical  conditions  or  sur- 
roundings conform  to  the  best  interests  of  progression. 
We  make  a  provision  concerning  the  physical  plane  be- 
cause many  are  so  encumbered  by  conditions  and  rela- 
tionships that  it  is  not  possible  for  them  to  immediately 
free  themselves.  Whatever  your  environment,  however, 
you  should  make  the  utmost  effort  to  govern  the  mind 
and  purify  the  spirit.  One  who  really  purposes  to  reach 
the  highest  standard  should  closely  analyze  himself  to 
see  that  he  is  not  held  in  detrimental  conditions  through 


DUTY  119 

selfishness  or  desire.  It  is  many  times  necessary  to 
choose  between  two  evils,  and  in  this  case  decision  should 
be  made  in  favor  of  the  thing  that  is  the  less  indulgent 
to  a  selfish  nature— whether  that  nature  is  one's  own  or 
belongs  to  another. 

There  are  times  when  one  is  held  in  bondage  to  others 
under  the  subterfuge  of  duty,  and  thereby  prevented 
from  taking  necessary  steps  to  augment  progression. 
Such  duties  should  not  hold,  and  sometimes  severe 
methods  must  be  used  to  free  the  individual.  The  mere 
fact  of  relationship  should  not  prevent  one  from  arrang- 
ing his  affairs  to  best  conform  to  his  development. 
Duty  should  be  measured  by  something  more  profound 
than  earthly  ties.  One  has  no  right  to  be  an  obstnaction 
in  the  path  of  another  through  the  sense  of  ownership 
accompanying  such  relations.  The  selfish  and  detri- 
mental demands  made  by  a  father,  mother,  son,  daugh- 
ter, sister  or  brother  who  refuses  to  live  the  true  life 
should  not  be  regarded  by  the  progressive  spirit.  The 
spirits  that  are  really  related  are  those  that  are  united 
in  progression. 

Whatever  the  conditions,  however,  it  is  your  duty  to 
be  calm,  serene,  contented  and  happy,  wide-aivake  and 
alive.  Many  times,  when  one's  aspirations  are  high, 
and  one  maintains  an  undisturbed  attitude,  coupled  with 
an  unwavering  determination  to  conquer,  difficulties 
give  way  before  the  power  thus  generated,  and  opportu- 
nities are  found  which  otherwise  would  have  been  im- 
possible. 

The  only  way  that  the   individual   can   always   know 


120  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

just  wherein  duty  lies  is  through  awakening  to  accurate 
perception,  or  through  the  guidance  of  a  teacher  who  is 
capable  of  correctly  analyzing  one's  conditions.  We  are, 
however,  presenting  a  few  general  instractions  which, 
if  followed  as  occasion  demands,  will  be  guides  along 
the  way. 

We  have,  in  general,  touched  on  one  side  of  the  ques- 
tion, which  is — do  not  fail  to  fully  do  duty.  And  now 
we  have  a  few  points  to  bring  forth  on  the  other  side, 
viz.  —take  care  not  to  overdo  duty.  Under  existing  cir- 
cumstances of  human  life,  the  latter  is  perhaps  the  more 
difficult  part  of  the  question  to  apply.  So  unconscious 
has  humanity  becom^e  of  the  source  of  its  helpfulness, 
and  so  closed  are  the  avenues  through  which  such  aid 
may  come,  that  many  people  are  almost  defeated  by 
their  environment,  and  the  pressure  is  so  great  that 
enforced  duty  carries  them  far  beyond  the  natural  limit. 
One  should  never  be  called  upon  to  sacrifice  physical, 
mental  or  spiritual  welfare  through  the  performance  of 
duties.  The  fact  that  this  is  ever  necessary  is  only  a 
part  of  the  web  in  which  the  human  race  has  entangled 
itself.  Here,  as  always,  you  must  face  the  condition  as 
it  is,  and  to  the  best  of  your  ability  observe  the  laws 
which  make  for  freedom. 

Before  this  subject  can  be  clarified  we  must  turn  to 
man  in  his  natural  state.  You  will  remember  that  he 
was  simple,  pure  and  sweet,  and  that  he  was  held 
in  obedience  to  and  under  the  protection  of  the 
Planes  of  Light.  Despite  his  long  disobedience,  and 
the  darkness  that  has  settled  upon  him,  his  connection 


DUTY  121 

has  never  been  entirely  broken.  There  has  never  been 
a  time  when  the  Higher  Powers  have  not  had  their 
light-bearers  on  the  earth.  Because  of  this  there  is 
hope  for  the  individual  who  is  struggling-  under  tremen- 
dous disadvantages,  providing  that  in  the  midst  of  his 
conditions  he  will  apply  the  principles  herein  delineated. 

We  are  now  appealing  to  the  one  who  is  in  extreme 
conditions— conditions  that  are  detrimental  to  progres- 
sion, and  where  it  seems  impossible  to  regulate  duty  so 
that  time  and  force  are  not  almost  wholly  involved.  To 
such  an  one  we  can  only  say  :  Begin  with  the  mind 
and  feelings,  and  persist  in  the  effort  to  quiet  them  ; 
to  weed  out  defects  in  the  nature :  to  use  the  senses, 
and  to  be  keenly  conscious  of  every  act.  In  the  degree 
that  this  is  done  will  you  be  able  to  gather  force, 
strength  and  wisdom  through  which  may  come  your 
spiritual,  mental  and  physical  emancination. 

The  command  is  have  a  care  that  you  do  not  overdo 
duty.  Whatever  your  ciscumstances,  then,  make  the 
effort  to  regulate  duty  to  conform  to  your  progression, 
trusting  to  the  force  gained  through  purifying  your 
nature  to  enable  you  to  take  still  further  steps  in  the 
right  direction.  An  excellent  rule,  which  will  apply  in 
many  cases,  is  :  Endeavor  to  increase  your  efficiency  in 
whatever  capacity  you  are  engaged,  and  do  not  fear  to 
make  righteous  demands.  Preserve  your  serenity  of 
mind,  and  keep  keenly  conscious  ;  do  right  in  all  your 
dealings,  and  let  your  attitude  be,  that  of  demanding 
justice  and  right  from  others.  Regarding  details, 
proceed  as  under  the  circumstances  seems  wise. 


122  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

The  individual  who  has  power  to  govern  his  duties 
according  to  his  will  may  more  easily  exert  a  care  not 
to  overdo.  In  many  cases,  going  just  beyond  the  limit 
of  wisdom  in  doing  duty  will  turn  acts  that  might  other- 
wise have  been  beneficial  into  a  detriment.  The  states 
of  mind  that  are  most  apt  to  carry  one  beyond  the  point 
of  wisdom  are — over-zeal,  enthusiasm,  over-estimation 
of  one's  ability,  and  pride  or  selfishness.  While  these 
things  govern  you,  you  are  never  safe.  Too  great  a 
valuation  placed  on  worldly  things  and  on  your  relation- 
ships may  also  misguide  you. 

In  regard  to  the  helping  of  others,  you  must  learn  to 
accurately  estimate  modifying  circumstances  ere  you 
will  be  able  to  know  when  duty  calls  and  how  far  it 
extends.  There  is  always  a  cost  to  pay  for  what  you 
do  in  this  world ;  and  even  doing  duty  is  expensive. 
Every  act  of  one's  life  costs  life  forces ;  and  one's 
capacity  to  receive  is  necessarily  limited.  No  matter 
how  abundant  the  supply  of  nature,  one  should  never 
expend  faster  than  he  can  accumulate.  If,  at  any  time, 
you  use  or  scatter  your  life  forces  faster  than  you. 
gather  or  appropriate  them,  you  are  impoverished. 
The  thing  then  to  always  be  considered  is,  what  can 
you  afford?  Cost  is  always  counted  when  material 
wealth  is  used.  It  is  necessary  to  make  much  closer 
divisions  when  soul  or  life  elements  are  in  question. 

So  long  as  an  individual  is  struggling  to  conquer  his 
own  imperfections,  and  to  keep  his  own  forces  from 
being  scattered,  with  possible  exceptions,  duty  does  not 
demand  that  he  give  spiritual  aid  to  others.     Even  one 


DUTY  12:-5 

who  has  risen  must  estimate  the  amount  of  life  forces 
he  has  to  give,  and  his  strength  to  deal  with  difficulties, 
before  entering  actioiL  One  is  really  not  fully  equip- 
ped for  the  duty  of  helping  others  until  he  is  rich  enough 
in  life  forces,  and  sufficiently  self  possessed,  to  give  of 
the  overflow.  This  means  that  one  has  learned  never 
to  heedlessly  scatter  soul  elements,  and  that,  beyond  all 
that  are  needed  for  his  spiritual,  mental  and  physical 
sustenance,  there  remains  a  surplus  fund  from  which  to 
draw  for  the  help  of  others. 

Beyond  the  observance  of  these  suggestions  the  indi- 
vidual must  depend  upon  his  own  development  for 
further  guidance  in  doing  and  not  overdoing  duty. 


INSTRUCTION  XXII 

INQUISITIVENESS,     CURIOSITY,      AND     GAINING     USELESS 

KNOWLEDGE 

A  N  intelligent  comprehension  and  application  of  the 
-^-^  previous  lessons  on  non-interference  and  duty  will 
preclude  the  errors  of  inquisitiveness  and  curiosity. 

An  inordinate  desire  to  pry  into  other  people's  affairs, 
and  to  know  all  about  them,  is  another  fault  which  will 
open  the  door  to  lower  planes.  Whenever  one  curiously 
penetrates  any  condition  he  must  more  or  less  partake 
of  whatever  elements  are  therein  found.  As  when  one 
enters  smoke  he  is  surrounded  and  clouded  thereby,  so 
is  one  affected  by  an  impure  atmosphere.  As  when  the 
door  is  open  in  a  storm  one  receives  the  full  brunt  of  its 
fury,  so  when  the  door  to  a  low  plane  is  opened  by 
inquisitiveness  and  curiosity,  the  one  thus  indiscrete 
receives  the  force  of  its  elements  and  influences.  These 
coalesce  with  one's  own  errors  of  like  nature,  and  he 
has  an  additional  problem  to  solve,  or  burden  to  carry. 
The  individual  who  is  endeavoring  to  rise  out  of  mixed 
conditions  must  exercise  great  care  that  he  does  noth- 
ing that  tends  to  weigh  him  down,  or  to  make  his 
overcoming  more  difficult ;  so,  from  this  viewpoint  as 


INQUISITIVENESS,    ETC.  125 

well  as  from  all  others,  inquisitiveness  and  curiosity  are 
hindrances  to  progression. 

If  what  is  known  as  the  vulgar  phases  of  these 
defects  were  the  only  avenues  through  which  they  do 
damage  we  would  not  need  to  go  further  into  their 
analysis.  The  individual  who  is  excessively  inquisitive 
and  curious  is  even  below  the  world's  standard  of  a 
desirable  character,  and  the  errors  that  are  most  de- 
nounced by  public  opinion  we  need  only  refer  to  as  de- 
structive, while  we  give  more  time  to  those  that  receive 
less  recognition,  and  especially  dwell  on  the  phases  of 
evil  which  the  world  considers  desirable,  but  which  are 
none  the  less  impediments  to  natural  growth. 

There  is  a  shade  of  difference  between  inquisitiveness 
and  curiosity.  Both  retard  progression,  but  there  is 
one  limited  consideration  in  favor  of  the  former.  When 
one  is  deeply  involved  in  his  own  errors,  and  still  the 
spirit  cries  for  light,  persistent  inquiry  may  finally  lead 
him  to  see  the  true  way.  But  this  is  the  longest,  hard- 
est and  most  destructive  method  of  finding  it,  and  at 
best  it  is  only  a  choice  between  two  evils.  When  the 
individual  delves  into  all  phases  of  thought  for  truth  he 
gathers  a  few  facts,  as  he  goes  along,  and  much  error. 
He  does  not  know  enough  to  segregate  the  true  from 
the  false ;  for  had  he  the  wisdom  to  do  this  the  same 
wisdom  would  render  his  research  unnecessary.  One 
whose  inquisitiveness  takes  this  form  is  held  for  a  tim.e 
by  the  facts  found,  but  he  cannot  long  remain  satisfied 
with  the  mixture.  Spurred  by  restlessness,  he  goes  on 
from  one  point  of  investigation  to  another,  doing  more 


126  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

or  less  sifting  but  all  the  time  accumulating  and  never 
correctly  separating  the  wheat  from  the  chaff.  There 
are  times  when  such  experiences  assist  to  awaken  the 
individual  to  the  fact  that  none  of  these  avenues  lead  to 
the  light  he  seeks.  Thus  he  is  benefitted  only  by  the 
preparation  which  may  make  him  willing  to  learn  and 
apply  the  laws  through  which  he  may  gain'  pure  wis- 
dom. 

No  one  can  awaken  to  the  intelligence  that  satisfies 
the  spirit  and  reveals  the  now  hidden  facts  of  nature, 
save  by  purifying  the  character  and  maintaining  a  calm 
undisturbed  yet  keenly  sentient  attitude.  A  teacher 
may  give  you  the  law  and  exemplify  its  application,  but 
you  must  make  it  a  part  of  your  own  life  ere  you  can 
know  it  for  yourself. 

Because  this  method  of  inquiry  is  so  universally  justi- 
fied we  have  analyzed  it,  but  it  is  not  the  natural  or 
best  way.  While  it  sometimes  leads  out  of  confusion, 
it  often  serves  only  to  carry  the  individual  around  in  a 
circle  or  causes  him  to  lapse  into  a  state  of  indifference 
or  pessimism,  in  the  darkness  of  which  he  may  indefi- 
nitely remain.  At  best  the  path  of  inquisitiveness  is 
only  better  than  a  settling  into  some  mixed  condition 
under  the  delusion  that  one  has  found  wisdom  ;  or  into 
a  conclusion  that  there  is  no  way  by  which  one  may 
know  what  is  true.  This  is  the  most  that  can  be  said  in 
favor  of  inquisitiveness,  which,  after  all,  can  only  lead 
one  to  realize  that  it  is  not  the  way  to  gain  accurate 
knowledge. 

One  who  has  no  ambition  to  know,   and  makes  no 


INQUISITIVENESS,    ETC.  127 

effort  in  that  direction,  but  who  Hves,  in  spite  of  con- 
ditions, a  sweet,  pure,  contented,  useful  Hfe,  combining 
the  activity  of  the  spiritual,  mental  and  physical  organ- 
isms, will  gain  more  light  than  can  ever  come  through 
intellectual  research.  If  you  want  knowledge  of  many 
things  valued  by  the  world,  if  you  want  a  high  intellec- 
tual development— which  means  a  brain  filled  with  con- 
flicting opinions  of  all  ages— cultivate  an  inquiring 
mind.  You  will  gain  these  things,  however,  at  the 
expense  of  a  keen,  accurately  discerning  intelligence  ; 
at  the  expense  of  a  highly  developed  spiritual  organism 
which  is  capable  of  reflecting  and  interpreting  wisdom 
from  the  Planes  of  Light,  and  at  the  expense  of  a  high 
standard  of  self-possession,  all  of  which  can  be  gained 
in  no  other  way  than  by  fulfilling  the  requirements  for 
progression. 

If  inquisitiveness  retards  the  natural  growth,  curios- 
ity is  still  less  lawful.  The  knowledge  you  need  in  the 
performance  of  duty,  or  the  knowledge  that  will  in- 
crease your  ability  or  usefulness,  or  better  your  condi- 
tion without  unnecessary  cost  to  your  progression,  it  is 
wise  to  acquire.  To  seek  any  information  whatsoever 
from  curiosity  is  idle,  irdulgent  and  destructive. 
Here  is  a  place  where  people  at  large  need  sadly  to  mind 
their  own  business.  We  must  once  more  remind  you 
that  if  you  would  reach  a  high  standard  you  must  not 
seek  knowledge  beyond  the  necessity  of  the  hour  ;  and 
above  all  things  you  are  prohibited  from  entering  planes 
other  than  the  one  on  which  you  are  prepared  to 
function. 


128  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

If  duty  in  the  highest  sense  of  the  word  is  fulfilled, 
the  knowledge  that  is  necessary,  or  for  any  reason  wise 
to  receive,  will  come  as  a  natural  result  of  development. 
But  to  try  to  gain  knowledge  of  any  plane  from  curios- 
ity, or  through  inquiry  before  one  is  matured  to  receive 
it,  is  not  only  useless  but  most  dangerous. 

We  hope  we  have  made  it  clear  that  inquisitiveness 
and  curiosity  in  their  grosser  forms,  as  well  as  the 
phases  which  lead  to  the  gaining  of  useless  knowledge, 
are  but  the  false  offsprings  of  nature,  and  have  no  place 
in  the  higher  development. 


INSTRUCTION  XXIII 

WRONG  DESIRES,    INDULGENCE,    HABITS 
AND  PASSIONS 

WE  have  already  analyzed  the  question  of  desires, 
and  referred  to  indulgence  as  destructive 
agencies  in  human  nature.  We  now  have  further  spe- 
cific remarks  to  make  on  these  characteristics,  concern- 
ing their  relation  to  some  of  the  more  extrem.e  states. 
We  have  shown  that  all  desires  are  wrong,  when  they 
are  considered  from  the  standpoint  of  the  higher  devel- 
opment, but  not  all  desires  are  equally  destructive. 
Hence,  we  have  dealt  with  the  subject  in  a  general 
way,  only  specifically  touching  on  the  less  damaging 
forms.  We  wish  now  to  analyze  the  more  mature 
stages  of  indulgence  which  destroy   self-possession. 

Individuality  cannot  become  established  until  one 
grows  self-possessed.  Self-possession  depends  upon  the 
purification  of  the  nature  from  all  weaknesses,  both 
great  and  small,  until  it  stands  transparent  in  its  per- 
fection. So  long  as  a  person  can  be  governed  in  the 
sHghtest  degree  by  any  influence  which  operates  detri- 
mentally, either  within  his  own  nature  or  without,  he 


130  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

is  not  self-possessed.  Generally  speaking,  the  desires 
that  have  the  greatest  hold  upon  human  nature  are 
those  that  are  most  deadly  to  the  soul  and  spirit.  And 
the  forms  of  indulgence  that  are  most  universal  are  of 
the  desires  that  belong  to  this  class. 

Indulgence  is  the  free  gratification  of  desire  granted 
either  to  one's  self  or  to  another.  While  checking 
desires  may  not  always  eradicate  them,  indulgence 
destroys  the  soul  and  degrades  the  spirit.  Indulgence 
must  cease,  and  desires  must  be  fully  conquered  or  they 
will  ultimately  conquer  and  become  habits.  When 
indulgence  has  gone  far  enough  to  form  a  habit  it  has 
taken  possession  of  you,  and  the  habit— not  your  spirit- 
is  in  command.  A  habit  is  a  form  of  indulgence  that 
has  become  involuntary,  or  that  operates  either  with  or 
without  one's  consent.  / 

Habits  fully  grown  become  passions,  and  passions 
rend  the  soul,  dissipate  the  life  elements  and  obsess  the 
spirit.  Anger,  hatred,  malice  or  lust  may  take  posses- 
sion of  the  spirit  and  transform  it  into  a  demon  of  like 
nature.  Even  dissatisfaction  and  melancholly  may  be- 
come passions  in  which  the  spirit  loses  its  identity.  All 
the  defective  traits  of  character  may  become  passions. 
Whether  they  reach  this  extreme  stage  or  not  depends 
upon  how  freely  they  are  licensed  to  operate.  The  free 
exercise  of  the  lower  traits  of  character  are  the  most 
deadly,  but  any  indulgence,  though  seemingly  quite  in- 
nocent, will  detract  from  your  self-possession. 

Art,  music  or  literature  may  become  passions  either 
in  their  contemplation  or  production.     If  these  things, 


WRONG  DESIRES,    ETC.  131 

or  any  others,  though  regarded  as  equally  desirable, 
cause  you  to  lose  your  self-control  they  are  not  permis- 
sible. In  the  degree  that  your  nature  is  in  any  way  con- 
trolled against  your  better  judgment  you  are  harmed, 
and  in  the  degree  that  your  acts— physical,  mental  or 
spiritual— are  indulged,  and  lead  to  habits,  you  are  con- 
trolled; and  when  passions  are  developed  you  have  lost 
your  self-possession,  destroyed  your  individuality,  and 
have  become  the  tool  of  lower  elements. 

There  is  one  passion  racking  humanity  which  it  is 
most  necessary  for  every  matured  individual  to  face  and 
understand.  Its  importance  becomes  paramount  for  two 
reasons.  One  is  because  it  is  the  desecration  of  the 
holiest  function  of  sentient  life.  The  other  is  because 
what  was  intended  as  a  creative  progressive  force  has 
descended  into  a  means  of  universal  indulgence,  densely 
polluting  and  deadly  destiTictive.  Nature's  undefiled 
law  of  generation  is  the  blending  of  the  pure  elements 
of  highly  developed  individualities.  These  elements  are 
chosen  by  the  law  of  spiritual  affinity,  which  law,  undis- 
turbed, never  m.akes  a  mistake.  And  both  these  laws 
operate  for  the  one  purpose  of  producing  a  more  perfect 
expression  of  life. 

Through  the  fulfillment  of  this— the  fruition  of  all 
nature's  laws  on  the  earth — humanity  would  have  pro- 
gressed from  generation  to  generation,  with  all  the  laws 
of  inheritance  promoting  higher  development  in  an 
unbroken  scale  of  ascent  from  one  state  of  excellence  to 
another.  Had  this  process  not  been  destroyed— but  had 
it  continued  from  the  time  of  man's  pure  state  through 


132  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

the  ages— the  human  race  would  today  have  reached  a 
grandeur  of  mental,  physical  and  spiritual  stature  be- 
yond all  possibility  of  estimation.  Instead  of  so  living 
that  nature  might  have  promoted  this  mighty  principle; 
over  the  misinterpretation,  misuse  and  degradation  of 
this  progressive  law,  humanity  has  spread  the  mantle 
of  justification  and  the  protection  of  temporal  law— and 
thereby  plunged,  unrelenting,  into  its  long  degeneracy. 

In  this  respect,  as  in  all  others,  nature's  divinest  plans 
and  holiest  purposes  have  been  torn  asunder  and  merci- 
lessly trampled  in  the  mire. 

Whether  nature  has  worked  for  the  creation,  suste- 
nance, protection  or  development  of  her  offspring,  her 
methods  have  been  ignored,  her  precepts  distorted,  and 
her  laws  of  beneficence  turned  into  a  curse. 

Applying  the  laws  of  nature  to  present  conditions,  the 
institution  of  marriage  should  never  serve  anything  less 
than  the  promotion  of  the  highest  ideals.  There  is  less 
excuse  for  selfish  motives  carrying  people  into  the  mar- 
riage state  than  into  any  other  relationship.  A  marriage 
that  takes  place  for  the  gratification  of —or  that  justi- 
fies—desires, of  any  kind,  is  null  and  void  in  the  sight 
of  that  which  is  highest  and  best  in  human  nature.  The 
real  purposes  of  such  unions  should  always  be  the  bet- 
tering of  the  natures,  the  producing  and  caring  for  off- 
spring, and  the  increased  powers  of  usefulness  engen- 
dered through  united  force  and  action. 

Nature  is  the  active  principle  of  the  most  Transcen- 
dent Intelligence  and  Wisest  Beneficence.  One  who  has 
learned  to  read  her  behests  uncolored  by  any  distorting 


WRONG   DESIRES,    ETC.  133 

influence,  sees  therein  an  unparalleled  provision  for  the 
harmonious  adjustment  of  all  creation.  Could  we  but 
awaken  the  consciousness  of  man  to  one  jot  or  tittle  of 
the  gladness  that  is  born  of  the  perfect  functioning  of 
nature's  laws  in  the  creation  and  protection  of  her  off- 
spring, he  would  be  willing  to  sacrifice  the  whole  of 
civilization  to  unite  his  being  with  her  exalted  trend. 
To  fully  do  this  is  now  impossible.  Nature's  commands 
he  has  destroyed  ;  her  warnings  have  passed  unheeded  ; 
her  way  has  been  lost  in  his — he  must  pay  the  cost. 
Nevertheless,  as  has  been  repeatedly  shown,  nature's 
laws  are  eternally  the  same,  both  in  substance  and 
application.  Neither  does  her  beneficence  abate,  and 
though  much  has  been  irreparably  lost  through  the  long 
period  of  disobedience,  yet,  even  as  nature  would  have 
led  along  peaceful  paths  to  a  perfected  earthly  condi- 
tion, so  she  will  still  guide  those  who  are  willing  and 
obedient  to  a  far  more  beautiful  state  than  can  be  in 
any  other  way  obtained  ;  and  which  state  shall  serve  as 
a  first  step  toward  complete  disentanglement  and  eter- 
nal progression. 


INSTRUCTION  XXIV 


GLUTTONY  AND  SLOTH 


T)EFORE  we  leave  the  subject  of  habits  and  passions 
"^  we  must  bring  before  you  still  another  habit  which, 
carried  to  its  extreme,  amounts  to  a  passion.  Because 
of  its  prevalence  and  justification,  and  also  because  it 
contributes  largely  to  a  secondary  state  that  accom- 
panies an  indulgent  life,  it  is  necessary  to  give  it  special 
attention. 

The  habit  referred  to  is  gluttony,  and  the  state  it  ac- 
centuates is  sloth,  or  excessive  indolence.  When  the 
senses  have  been  used  for  the  purpose  of  self-indul- 
gence, sensation  is  deadened ;  and  more  and  more  ex- 
treme methods  must  be  used  to  induce  response.  The 
reason  for  this  is  that  the  life  forces  which  feed  the 
whole  organism  are  squandered,  and  the  magnetic  cen- 
ters through  which  they  are  gathered  are  almost  de- 
stroyed. Hence,  the  whole  sensory  apparatus  is 
partially  paralyzed,  and  excitation  can  be  produced  only 
by  constantly  increasing  stimulus. 

The  sense  of  taste  is  no  exception  to  this  rule  ;  and  in 
this  respect,  as  in  all  others,  the  whole  human  race  is 
abnormal.      The  child   begins  life  nearer  the  natural 


GLUTTONY  AND   SLOTH  135 

state,  but  inherited  desires  and  education  soon  cause  it 
to  follow  in  the  same  ruts  traveled  by  its  progenitors. 
The  specific  and  only  purpose  of  food  is  to  supply  the 
body  with  fuel  from  which  it  may  generate  the  needed 
substance    to    give    it    health,    strength    and    power. 
Whenever  eating  is  done  for  the  purpose  of  gratifying 
taste— beyond  the  point  where  taste  aids  digestion— it 
becomes  an  indulgence.     Carried  to  an  extreme,  indul- 
gence either  in  quantity  or  quality  of  food  is  gluttony. 
The  quantity,    quality   and   variety  of   feed   consumed 
daily,  by  a  great  many  people,  do  much  to  impair  bod- 
ily health.     There  are  probably  quite  as  many  people  in 
the  world  suffering  from  over-eating,  or  eating  improp- 
er kinds  of  food,  as  there  are  people  suffering  from 
being  under-fed.     In   this  respect,    as    in  all   others, 
either  extreme  is  destructive.     What  is  needed  is  the 
purest,  simplest  ard  m.ost  natural  food   to  which  the 
civilized  man  can  accommodate  his  system,  and  in  just 
the  quantity  that  is  conducive,  according  to  individual 
conditions,  to  his  physical  welfare. 

In  this  connection,  we  wish  to  express  our  approval 
of— and  add  encouragement  to — rapidly  increasing 
num.bers  of  people  who  are  realizing  that  the  taking  of 
sentient  life  is  not  necessary  to  man's  sustenance. 
There  are  many  forces  at  work,  or  sets  of  circum- 
stances, through  which  it  is  being  proven  that  flesh-eat- 
ing is  non-essential,  and  the  time  is  not  far  distant 
when  no  intelligent  voice  will  be  lifted  in  its  defense  on 
any  ground  other  than  that  flesh  is  a  habitual  food  and 
caters  to  man's  perverted  taste. 


136  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

There  are  many  sound  ideas  now  being  put  forth  to 
show  that  there  is  in  the  vegetarian  diet  all  the  nutri- 
ment that  is  contained  in  flesh,  fish  or  fowl.  Further- 
more, many  diseases  are  now  attributed  to  these  latter 
kinds  of  food.  Whenever  sentient  life  has  become 
extinct,  disintegration  and  decay  at  once  set  in.  When 
the  bodies  of  once  living  things  are  fed  upon  there  is 
taken  into  the  system  substance  from  which  poisonous 
gases  are  generated  that  are  more  or  less  destructive  to 
the  system.  How  much  injury  is  done  by  them  depends 
upon  the  power  of  the  system  to  neutralize,  resist  or 
throw  off  the  disturbing  agency. 

The  nearer  first-hand  nature's  nutritive  substance  is 
received  the  purer  it  is  and  the  more  vital,  therefore 
the  more  helpful.  At  best,  all  animal  food  gives  na- 
ture's elements  second-hand.  They  are  first  incorporated 
into  the  organism  of  the  animal,  and  then,  with  the 
noisome  elements  to  which  animal  life  is  always  more 
or  less  subject,  they  pass  into  the  human  organism,  and 
when  the  bodies  of  animals  are  eaten  the  elements  are 
not  only  second-hand  but  in  the  process  of  putrifaction. 

Fruits,  vegetables,  nuts  and  grains  are  more  tena- 
cious of  the  life  forces  than  any  animal  organism.  As 
may  be  discerned,  simply  through  observation,  long 
periods  may  pass  after  these  things  are  gathered  before 
disintegration  begins.  If  the  system  is  healthful  it 
will  appropriate  the  vital  elements  of  all  these  kinds  of 
food— coming  as  they  do  more  directly  from  nature — 
and  excrete  the  surplus  long  before  decay  sets  in. 
Such  animal    products  as  eggs,   milk  and  butter  also 


GLUTTONY  AND  SLOTH  137 

have  the  life  elements  undisturbed,  and  are,  therefore, 
less  objectionable.  But  all  kinds  of  food  produced  by 
severing  the  life  from  the  organism  are  always  both 
non-essential  and  inimical. 

As  one  progresses  and  the  organism  becomes  more 
refined,  one  not  only  loses  all  appetite  for  any  kind  of 
flesh,  but  one  is  not  able  to  endure  its  magnetism. 
Animal  Magnetism  is  a  force  that  penetrates  all  animal 
substance,  and  partaking  of  the  nature  of  the  substance 
to  which  it  belongs,  it  tends  to  unite  elements  of  like 
nature.  The  magnetism  of  the  flesh  of  animals  will 
coalesce  with  the  lower  elements  of  the  magnetism  of 
the  one  who  partakes  of  it ;  and  the  more  there  is  in 
his  own  magnetism  that  is  like  that  of  the  animal,  the 
less  conscious  he  is  of  any  change.  Also,  the  more  he 
eats  its  flesh  the  more  polluted  he  becomes  and  the  less 
conscious  he  is.  The  more  refined  the  magnetism 
grows,  the  more  awake  the  individual  becomes  to  the 
presence  of  a  foreign  element,  and  the  more  forcefully 
will  his  organism  resist  its  intrusion.  Contact  with 
lower  elements  will  do  less  permanent  harm  to  one  who 
has  purified  his  own  magnetism  than  it  will  do  to  one 
who  is  progressing,  for  the  reason  that  one  who  has 
risen  has  less  in  his  organism  in  common  with  a  lower 
magnetism  ;  is  thus  more  conscious  of  a  foreign  element 
and  has  greater  powers  of  resistance.  Every  person, 
however,  whether  on  a  high  or  a  low  plane,  is  detrimen- 
tally affected— both  from  a  standpoint  of  health  and 
through  magnetic  influence— by  eating  the  flesh  of 
animals. 


138  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

If  killing  animals  for  food  is  not  necessary  to  man's 
welfare,  then  surely  their  wholesale  slaughter  should 
not  go  on  for  his  gratification.  When  the  barbarity  of 
this  custom  is  once  realized  one  needs  no  other  induce- 
ment to  refuse  to  abet  it  through  any  form  of  indul- 
gence. 

There  are  many  reasons,  however,  why  it  is  not  wise 
to  go  to  the  extreme  of  refusing,  under  all  circumstances, 
to  use  any  article  gained  through  the  sacrifice  of  animal 
life.  Civilization  has  so  bound  and  subjected  the  human 
race  that  many  things  which  would  otherwise  be  intol- 
erable are  necessary  as  the  lesser  of  two  evils.  But 
where  one  may  substitute  a  vegetable  for  an  animal  pro- 
duct, without  injury,  it  is  certainly  best  to  do  so. 

The  fact,  seemingly  demonstrated  by  nature,  that 
miany  forms  of  life  are  sustained  by  the  preying  of  the 
stronger  upon  the  weaker  is  not  one  of  nature's  laws, 
but  one  of  man's  gigantic  corruptions.  It  will  not  serve 
our  present  purpose  to  enter  an  analysis  of  the  above 
statement,  but  it  will  permanently  stand.  As  it  is  now 
being  clearly  shown  that  a  vegetarian  diet  is  more 
wholesome  and  more  natural,  so  will  all  of  nature's  per- 
versions ultimately  be  exposed. 

Animal  life  should  not  be  sacrificed  to  supply  any  of 
man's  needs.  The  vegetable  world  aficords  ample  mate- 
rial from  which  may  be  furnished  any  necessary  article. 
As  soon  as  people  awaken  to  the  necessity  of  substitut- 
ing the  vegetable  kingdom  for  all  animal  products  they 
will  find  a  way  to  do  so. 

Over-eating  or  drinking,  or  partaking  of  that  which 


GLUTTONY  AND  SLOTH  139 

caters  to  an  abnormal  taste,  immediately  throws  the 
digestive  apparatus  out  of  balance  and  impairs  the 
assimilation.  This  weakens  physically,  and  the  mental 
and  spiritual  organisms  are  also  involved.  That  gluttony 
destroys  health  and  interferes  with  mental  activity  will 
probably  not  be  questioned,  but  how  the  spiritual  nature 
is  thereby  affected  is  not  so  generally  recognized.  It  is, 
however,  a  well  known  fact  that  certain  physical  dis- 
eases are  accompanied  by  mental  disorders  and  spiritual 
weaknesses,  such  as  irritability,  a  tendency  to  melan- 
choly, etc.  There  is  a  constant  action  and  reaction 
among  the  physical,  mental  and  spiritual  planes,  and 
whatever  affects  one  part  of  the  organism,  to  a  greater 
or  less  extent,  colors  every  other  part. 

In  the  degree  that  the  fuel  given  to  the  body  is  assim- 
ilated force  is  generated.  This  force  adds  vitality  to 
the  whole  organism.  Whenever  the  body  is  diseased  or 
weakened,  even  as  its  force  and  powers  of  resistance 
are  lessened,  so  the  nature  becomes  less  vigorous  in  its 
efforts  to  prevent  or  combat  any  disturbing  influence. 

The  very  fact  that  the  appetite  has  become  gratified 
to  the  point  of  gluttony  shows  that  it  has  ruled  the  bet- 
ter judgm.ent,  and  whatever  rules  the  better  judgment 
is  immoral. 

Appetite,  in  the  sense  in  which  it  is  here  used,  should 
not  be  confused  with  hunger  or  thirst.  Hunger  and 
thirst  are  the  calls  of  nature  which  guide  the  individual 
as  to  what  the  system  needs  in  the  way  of  sustenance. 
Appetite  may  or  may  not  be  normal,  according  to  how 
much  it  has  been  abused. 


140  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

Out  of  a  glutted  nature  grows  the  habit  of  sloth  or 
indolence.  One  may  be  lazy  from  many  causes,  but  it 
invariably  has  its  beginnings  in  indulgence.  The  more 
indulgent  the  nature  the  more  the  different  stages  of 
indolence  take  possession.  Sloth  is  only  laziness  carried 
to  an  extreme,  and  the  habit  of  gluttony  adds  much  to 
physical,  mental  and  spiritual  lethargy.  In  all  depart- 
ments of  nature  idleness  or  uselessness  or  inactivity 
causes  stagnation  and  decay.  So,  in  view  of  these 
results,  there  can  be  no  hesitation  about  the  necessity 
of  conquering  the  desires  that  lead  to  gluttony;  nor 
checking  all  indulgence  which  contributes  to  an  idle  life, 
and  which  leads  into  the  habits  and  passions  that  pre- 
clude the  possibility  of  rising  to  the  natural  state  of 
self-possession. 


INSTRUCTION    XXV 

ARGUMENTS  AND   CONTENTIONS 

rpHE  currently  accepted  idea  of  Individuality  is  that  it  is 
comprised  of  theories,  opinions,  ideas  and  character- 
istics which  have  been  accepted  and  incorporated  into 
the  nature,  and  which  distinguish  one  person  from 
another.  Viewed  from  this  standpoint  it  is  self-evident 
that  individuality  must  be  impermanent.  One's  theories, 
opinions,  ideas  and  characteristics  are  constantly  sub- 
ject to  change.  They  come  and  go  according  to  the 
various  influences  of  experience  and  accumulated  knowl- 
edge. Were  there  nothing  more  stable  than  these 
things  to  form  its  basis  individuality  would  be  nothing 
more  valuable  than  a  kaleidoscope  of  shifting,  influences. 
The  fact  revealed  by  nature  is  that  individuality  con- 
sists of  whatever  there  is  within  the  physical,  mental 
or  spiritual  organisms  that  partakes  of  its  purity,  and 
is,  therefore,  unchanging.  In  so  far  as  characteristics 
are  induced  by  that  which  belongs  to  the  highest  attri- 
butes of  a  perfected  spirit  they  add  to  the  individuality. 
In  so  far  as  ideas  are  in  accord  with  facts  of  nature, — 
which  always  have  been  true,  and  which,  unvarying, 
shall  endure  through  eternity— they  belong  to  the  indi- 
viduality. 


142  THE   PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

If  you  wish  to  know  how  much  individuality  you  pos- 
sess eject  from  your  mind  every  phase  of  consciousness 
that  does  not  testify  to  what  you  actually  know.  Give 
nothing  else— however  high  its  superficial  valuation- 
place  in,  or  power  to  function  through,  your  brain. 
Count  as  nothing  all  the  characteristics  that  have  come 
as  distorted  products  of  nature— this  includes  all  human 
weaknesses.  When  this  is  done,  what  remains  is  your 
individuality.  However  minute  that  remainder,  it  is  all 
that  is  of  the  least  value  in  your  mental  or  spiritual 
organism,  and  the  only  fit  foundation  on  which  to  build 
the  noble  and  everlasting  structure  which  constitutes 
the  natural  man. 

The  natural  man  is  strongly  individualized,  but  his 
individuality  is  not  marked  by  the  differences  existing 
between  his  own  and  other  people's  ideas  and  superficial 
characteristics.  Correct  ideas  must  be  based  upon  un- 
changing facts.  Therefore  all  people  who  have  correct 
ideas  must  agree. 

A  beautiful  character  must  be  natural,  for  nature  un- 
disturbed leads  the  spirit  to  awaken  in  unison  with  all 
the  nobler  attributes.  The  attributes  that  belong  to 
strong  individuality  must  agree — not  differ— wherever 
and  however  they  find  expression. 

Neither  does  individuality  lie  in  one's  likes  or  dislikes, 
for  these  are  also  unstable  and  belong  to  the  perverted 
nature.  In  the  natural  individual  likes  and  dislikes  are 
not  pronounced.  He  is  neutral  toward  all  things— 
always  contented  and  always  happy. 

If  the  body  had  never  been  degraded  it  would  have 


ARGUMENTS  AND  CONTENTIONS         143 

reflected  and  expressed  one's  individuality  so  perfectly 
as  to  have  been  a  part  of  it.  But  as  it  stands  today, 
the  result  of  ages  of  inherited  states  of  degeneracy,  its 
pliability  is  largely  destroyed  and  it  has  become  crude 
and  fixed.  The  most  pronounced  traits  of  character 
speak  through  the  subtler  expressions  of  the  body,  as 
of  the  face,  eyes,  mouth  and  through  mannerisms  ;  and 
when  the  nature  becomes  purified  the  individuality  is  in 
turn  reflected  in  these  limited  ways.  Further  than 
this  the  body  can  never  become  sufficiently  refined  to 
form  a  part  of  the  individuality. 

The  life  forces  attracted  by  the  body— permeating  it, 
surrounding  the  spirit,  forming  the  soul  and  the  aura 
about  the  body— become  a  part  of  the  individuality,  and 
after  the  individuality  is  firmly  established  these  things 
do  not  change. 

Humanity  is  no  exception  to  the  following  rule  that 
applies  everywhere  in  nature  : 

The  organic  world  differs  not  so  much  in  its  compo- 
nent elements  as  in  the  manifold  variety  of  ways  in 
which  the  fundamentals  are  compounded  into  concrete 
form.  Perfected  natures  are  essentially  alike,  and  the 
distinctions  of  individuality  are  produced  by  the  various 
blendings  of  the  elements  which  make  up  the  whole. 
It  should  therefore  be  understood  that  individuality  can 
be  based  on  nothing  less  than  fundamentals,  which  are 
permanent  and  which  vary  only  in  arrangement,  color- 
ing and  expression. 

All  highly  developed  individualities  embrace  the  attri- 
butes of  serenity,   humility,   contentment,    generosity, 


144  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

patience,  kindness,  love,  tenderness,  and  all  the  requis- 
ite elements  of  a  beautiful  character.  But  in  different 
ones  they  are  differently  expressed  and  accented.  For 
example,  one  highly  individualized  person  may  be  a 
pronounced  expression  of  earnestness,  another  of  joy- 
ousness,  another  of  tenderness  and  another  of  humility. 
Or  there  may  be  accentuated  combinations  of  earnest- 
ness and  tenderness,  of  joyousness  and  tenderness,  of 
humility  and  earnestness,  and  so  on  indefinitely— each 
person  lacking  in  none  of  the  higher  attributes  or  qual- 
ifications of  an  exalted  nature,  but  taking  on  the  color- 
ing and  shading  of  those  with  which  he  is  especially 
endowed. 

While  we  have  only  touched  on  the  possiblities  of  in- 
dividual expression,  our  illustrations  are  sufficient  to 
offer  a  suggestion  of  the  unlimited  variety  of  combina- 
tions, with  their  hues,  lights  and  shades,  which  consti- 
tute individuality.  Nature,  in  her  infinite  variations,  is 
the  best  exemplification  of  this  principle  which  is  every- 
where at  work. 

When  one  becomes  conscious  of  the  foregoing  facts 
regarding  individuality  one  sees  no  occasion  for  argu- 
ments or  contentions. 

The  looseness  of  language  sometimes  tends  to  confuse 
rather  than  elucidate  ideas.  Therefore,  for  the  sake  of 
clearness,  we  must  limit  the  term  arguments,  used  in 
this  connection,  to  mean  a  milder  form  of  contentment, 
and  place  its  broader  significance  under  the  heads  of 
discussion  and  analysis.  Arguments,  to  which  we  refer 
as  unlawful,  are  the  persistent  presenting  of  statements 


ARGUMENTS  AND  CONTENTIONS         145 

in  opposition  to  those  already  made,  and  which  lead  into 
contention. 

Arguments  usually  arise  over  points  which  have  no 
foundation  in  facts,  or  which  are  colored  by  misconcep- 
tions, and  misconceptions,  however  viewed,  lead  to 
erroneous  conclusions.  In  other  words,  both  sides  of 
an  ar^ment  are  generally  wrong ;  and  though  each 
side  is  presented  in  every  conceivable  way.  all  that  is 
accomplished  is  the  pitting  of  error  against  error. 
Neither  one  engaged  in  the  contest  is  convinced,  for 
each  clearly  sees  where  his  opponent  is  wrong,  but  is 
blind  to  the  weakness  of  his  own  side  of  the  question. 
The  only  result  is  indefinite  and  disturbing  contention. 

Granting  that  one  is  correct,  if  the  opponent  is  suffi- 
ciently fixed  in  his  opinions  to  argue,  both  are  still 
wasting  time.  No  person  can  be  convinced  against  his 
will.  Intelligent  discussion,  without  feeling  or  self 
assertion,  is  not  harmful,  and  often  opens  up  the  real 
nature  of  a  fact  or  condition.  In  this  way  discussion  is 
helpful  to  all  concerned.  Whenever  such  discussion 
reaches  the  point  of  argument,  however,  it  immediately 
becomes  not  only  useless  but  detrimental.  Nothing 
more  quickly  gives  rise  to  conflicting  vibrations— which 
act  and  react  on  all  the  minds  subjected  thereto— than 
arguments  and  contentions.  If  this  conflict  continues, 
irritability  and  anger  invariably  follow.  Thus  the  mind 
is  disturbed,  life  forces  are  scattered,  and  the  nature 
darkened.  One  who  wishes  to  progress  must  begin  at 
once  to  check  any  disposition  to  argue  or  contend. 
However  unreasonable  or  wrong  you  may  feel  the  peo- 


146  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

pie  you  contact  to  be,  no  satisfactory  result  can  ever  be 
reached  through  contention,  whether  that  contention  be 
mild  or  heated.  No  one  has  indulged  in  this  spirit 
without  having  had  ample  opportunity  to  learn  this 
lesson  by  experience.  The  harmony  of  many  homes  is 
destroyed  by  this  worse  than  useless  practice. 

You  should  remember  that  so  far  as  differences  in 
opinion  are  concerned  your  neighbor  has  as  much  right 
to  his  opinion  as  you  have  to  yours.  The  one  who  does 
not  see  this  is  blinded  by  pride  and  selfishness,  and  is 
therefore  doubly  at  fault.  We  must  again  remind  you 
that  you  are  interfering  with  your  growth  if  you  form 
opinions,  much  less  assert  them,  in  opposition  to  others. 

Untimely  assertion  of  facts  leading  to  contention  is 
also  unlawful.  Generally  speaking,  for  one  who  is 
learning  to  walk  in  the  straight  and  narrow  path,  it  is 
far  better  to  yield  a  point  than  contend  for  it.  Yield- 
ing—except to  wrong-doing— even  to  the  point  of  self- 
sacrifice,  will  not  hurt  you.  In  fact,  whatever  interferes 
with  your  selfishness  or  self-importance  will  do  you. 
good,  while  idle  self-assertion  will  block  your  way. 

When  the  individual  reaches  the  place  where  he  makes 
no  comparisons,  forms  no  opinions,  draws  no  conclusions, 
is  influenced  by  no  likes  or  dislikes — and  when  he  real- 
izes that  individuality,  however  varied  its  expression,  is 
always  to  be  highly  respected  and  appreciated,  and  that 
false  concepts  cannot  be  overcome  through  argument  or 
contention— he  will  never  jeopardize  his  own  harmonious 
state  by  lifting  his  voice  to  quibble  over  differences. 
Neither  will  he  waste  his  time  or  force  in  an  effort  to 


ARGUMENTS  AND  CONTENTIONS         147 

convince  any  but  a  willing  spirit,  and  tlien  he  will  do  so 
only  when  it  has  become  his  business  to  instruct. 

As  one  learns  to  appreciate  individuality,  and  to  gain 
greater  self-possession,  arguments  and  contentions,  with 
other  bad  habits,  pass  from  the  life. 


INSTRUCTION  XXVI 


DECEIT     AND      HYPOCRISY 


TTAD  the  human  race  not  begun  wrong  doing-,  false 
representation  would  never  have  entered  the  mind. 
When  a  spider  weaves  his  web  one  strand  forms  the 
foundation  for  another,  and  every  fiber  of  that  intricate 
little  mechanism  connects,  directly  or  indirectly,  with 
every  other,  and  the  whole  is  for  the  specific  purpose  of 
entangling.  In  this  same  way  evil  has  woven  the  net- 
work of  perverted  human  nature,  and  every  individual 
is  caught  therein. 

The  more  complex  human  nature  becomes  in  its  errors, 
and  the  more  complete  its  subjection,  the  more  neces- 
sary does  deception  seem,  and  the  more  varied  do  its 
forms  become.  The  further  human  nature  descends 
from  the  high  state  to  which  itreally  belongs— the  more 
it  assumes  to  be  what  it  is  not — the  more  nefarious  its 
means  to  ends  and  the  greater  the  necessity  of  covering 
its  tracks.  The  reasons  for  deceit  and  hypocrisy  are 
manifold,  depending,  we  repeat,  upon  the  density  of 
the  errors  in  which  the  individual  is  involved.  Gen- 
erally speaking,  because  people  have  never  been  able  to 
forget  their  ideals,  they  are  not  willing  to  acknowledge 
their  iniquities. 


DECEIT  AND   HYPOCRISY  149 

The  individual  represents  himself  to  be  better  than 
he  is,  largely  because  he  has  not  the  courage  to  face  the 
judgment  of  his  own  errors.  The  condemnation  of  oth- 
ers plays  its  part,  but  even  if  one  does  not  fear  this,  the 
conscience  is  less  troublesome  when  the  evils  in  the  na- 
ture are  well  cloaked.  The  exception  to  this  state  is 
when  one  is  sufficiently  awake  to  condemn  one's  own 
errors,  whether  they  are  known  to  others  or  not ;  but 
this  is  the  first  step  toward  self-purification. 

Shame  is  probably  one  of  the  most  valuable  charac- 
teristics that  has  entered  man's  artificial  nature.  Had 
man  remained  pure  he  would  never  have  known  shame, 
but  because  he  fell  and  yet  could  not  wholly  forget,  this 
quality  is  developed, and  only  in  extreme  cases  of  degrada- 
tion is  shame  lacking.  Had  no  means  been  devised  to  cov- 
er evil,  shame  would  operate  to  much  greater  advantage 
than  it  now  does.  When  man  found  that  he  must  either 
give  up  his  evils  or  be  exposed,  the  intellect— which  has 
always  ministered  to  artificial  development— gave  him 
the  mantle  of  misrepresentation.  This  mantle  he  has 
used  to  its  utmost,  until  today  deception  and  hypocrisy 
are  so  universal  that  their  manifold  hues  have,  con- 
sciously or  unconsciously,  deeply  dyed  the  whole  of 
human  nature. 

Social  relations  reek  with  insincerity  and  assumption. 

Religious  life  has  few  corners  that  are  not  infested 
with  hypocrisy. 

In  home  life  lurks  secret  disloyalty. 

Business  and  political  life  flaunt  their  prostituted  hon- 
esty, justice  and  integrity  to  the  four  winds  of  heaven. 


150  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

There  is  probably  no  evil  more  theoretically  condemned 
and  practically  condoned  than  dishonesty.  It  is  another 
of  Greed's  hideous  offspring,  and  an  inseparable  twin  to 
Injustice.  Man  dare  not  effectually  attack  dishonesty, 
for  such  an  attack  would  reach  back  to  its  parentage, 
whose  roots  are  buried  deep  in  the  vitals  of  civilization. 
He  must  tolerate  dishonesty,  or  yield  up  greed  and 
shake  the  institutions  built  thereon  from  center  to  cir- 
cumference. 

We  must  here  sound  another  note  of  warning.  The 
individual  might  either  realize  that  he  is  entrapped, 
and,  strand  by  strand,  disengage  himself  and  enlist  his 
forces,  intelligence,  energy  and  abilities  on  the  side  of 
right,  or  be  crushed  by  evil,  when  either  universal  or 
individual  wrong  grows  too  heavy  for  its  pedestal  and 
crashes  onto  planes  below. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  go  into  further  detail  concerning 
dishonesty,  beyond  what  is  embodied  in  the  caution, 
never  resort  to  misrepresentation,  either  direct  or  im- 
plied, to  gain  your  ends  or  to  serve  your  purposes. 
There  is  always  a  better  way,  and  if  you  are  alive,  wide- 
awake and  able,  this  way  you  will  find.  That  which 
cannot  be  legitimately  gained  through  developed  intelli- 
gence and  ability,  sacrifice  without  one  moment's  hesi- 
tation. For  the  one  who  would  progress  there  is  no 
possible  compromise— there  must  be  absolute  integrity 
in  every  detail  of  the  daily  life.  Whatever  else  you  are 
called  upon  to  sacrifice,  preserve  your  character. 

Referring  to  the  more  petty  forms  of  deceit  and 
hypocrisy,  there  is  nothing  that  will  add  more  to  your 


DECEIT  AND  HYPOCRISY  151 

own  self-respect,  and  more  quickly  demand  respect  from 
others,  than  a  non-assuming  attitude.  Always  be  will- 
ing to  express  your  own  individuality.  However  little, 
however  humble,  be  yourself.  Do  not  compare  yourself 
with  other  people  nor  emulate  them.  Remember  that 
individuality  never  expresses  itself  twice  alike,  and  that 
one  phase  is  as  desirable  as  another,  and  as  much  needed 
to  make  a  perfect  whole. 

Do  not  try  to  make  yourself  anything  but  what  nature 
intended  you  to  be  ;  and  at  no  time  in  your  progression 
assume  to  be  what  you  are  not.  There  is  great  strength 
gained  in  being  willing  to  have  one's  errors  revealed. 
Do  not  waste  your  forces  trying  to  hide  your  weaknesses, 
but  do  your  utmost  to  conquer  them.  Remember  that 
whichever  phase  of  it  is  viewed,  false  representation 
serves  but  one  purpose,  and  that  is  to  form  a  gilded 
casket  which  hides  a  venomous  serpent. 

He  who  would  avoid  a  more  hopeless  entanglement  in 
the  meshes  of  the  web  that  entraps  to  destroy,  must  rid 
his  nature  of  all  phases  of  dishonesty,  deceit,  hypocrisy, 
insincerity,  disloyalty  and  injustice— for  these  things  all 
co-operate  to  add  density  to  darkness  and  confusion  to 
chaos. 


INSTRUCTION    XXVII 

SADNESS,    MELANCHOLY  AND  PEEVISHNESS 

QORROW  is  the  offspring  of  sin. 
^     When  we  have  said  this  we  have  told  the  whole 
truth  of  human  suffering.     Sin  is  the  departure  from  the 
prescribed  by  nature. 

Sorrow  and  suffering  of  all  kinds  are  only  fibers  of  the 
web  of  entanglement. 

So  intricate  are  the  weavings  of  cause  and  effect  that 
the  original  cause  of  sorrow  is  lost  to  superficial  view, 
but  it  nevertheless  has  but  one  source,  and  that  is  man's 
disobedience  to  nature. 

As  we  view  present  conditions  of  the  human  race, 
every  effect  becomes  a  secondary  cause,  and  every  cause 
is  but  the  effect  of  a  prior  cause,  until  we  are  faced 
with  almost  limitless  multiplications  of  causes  and 
effects  ;  but  all  reach  back  through  seons  of  generations 
until  we  arrive  at  the  origin  of  all  earthly  evils— the  day 
that  man  began  his  efforts  to  improve  on  nature  by  arti- 
ficial methods.  In  that  hour  was  laid  the  foundation 
for  all  classes  of  suffering,  sorrow,  sadness  and  mel- 
ancholy. 

The  deeper  has  become  man's  involvement  the  more 
universal  sorrow  has  become,  and  the  more  varied  in  its 


SADNESS,    MELANCHOLY,    ETC,  153 

nature.  Even  as  deceit  and  hypocrisy  developed  to 
cover  sin,  so,  as  sorrow  has  grown  to  such  proportions 
as  to  seem  to  be  the  inevitable  accompaniment  of  human 
life,  man  has  invented  many  methods  to  drown  this  dis- 
turbing elem.ent.  But,  probably,  of  all  his  devices  to 
mitigate  the  results  of  natural  deficiency,  those  invented 
to  prevent  and  cure  the  sufferings  of  humanity  have  the 
least  served  the  purposes  for  which  they  were  intended. 
A  large  part  of  human  energy  and  intellect  is  directed 
toward  the  prevention,  alleviation  and  cure  of  the  ills  of 
mind,  body  and  spirit  of  man.  Much  is  accomplished  in 
many  directions,  but,  taken  as  a  whole,  human  woe 
stalks  on.  When  checked  in  one  direction  it  presents 
itself  in  another,  and  the  veil  of  sorrow  is  never  lifted. 

We  do  not  wish  to  be  understood  to  say  that  human- 
ity is  wholly  void  of  happiness,  but  we  do  mean  that 
there  are  many  fitful  emxotions  that  pass  for  happiness 
which  are  counterfeit,  and  come  and  go  as  the  scene 
changes.  Furthermore,  there  is  no  door  at  which  sor- 
row may  not  at  any  moment  knock— unless  the  one  who 
resides  therein  has  pressed  so  close  to  nature's  heart 
that  her  arms  protect  him  from  intrusion.  He  who  lives 
the  most  natural  and  the  most  useful  life,  and  seeks  his 
own  happiness  the  least,  is  the  one  who  knows  the  real 
from  the  counterfeit,  and  to  such  an  one  genuine  happi- 
ness is  most  constant. 

There  are  innumerable  direct  causes  for  sorrow,  but 
we  are  now  dealing  with  the  question  as  a  whole  ;  and, 
considered  from  that  standpoint,  no  artificial  means 
ever  have  been  found,  nor  will  any  be  found  in  the  time 


154  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

to  come,  to  alleviate  the  saddened  spirit  of  the  human 
race.  All  the  varied  creations  that  may  be  placed 
under  the  head  of  entertainment,  bring,  at  best, 
only  a  temporary  cessation  from  care — a  surcease  which 
comes  because  of  the  involving  of  the  interests  in  fleet- 
ing pleasures.  When  entertainments  are  indulged  in 
for  their  own  sake,  tlie  enjoyment  in  them  is  not  only 
passing  but  reactionary  ;  therefore,  we  say,  inventions 
to  allay  sorrow  are  vain.  They  do  not  really  relieve  the 
condition,  because  the  more  they  involve  the  nature  the 
greater  is  the  reaction  in  satiety  and  discontent. 

Coming  to  the  individual,  the  only  recourse  for  a  sad 
heart  is  through  natural  development.  In  the  begin- 
ning he  must  check  his  sorrowing  with  an  iron  hand, 
whatever  the  cause  or  nature  of  it  may  be.  Under  no 
circumstances  can  yielding  to  feelings  in  the  least  help 
the  situation. 

One  may  be  helped  by  analyzing  some  of  the  causes 
of  his  unhappiness.  Are  you  sad  because  of  ungratified 
desires  or  unfulfilled  ambitions  ?  There  is  but  one  way 
— uproot  desires  —  conquer  ambition.  Does  your  des- 
pondency arise  from  severed  ties  and  attendant  loneli- 
ness ?  Here,  also,  your  desires  are  involved,  and  your 
love  is  selfish.  The  natural  spirit  is  never  lonely.  If  it 
is  best  or  inevitable  that  your  loved  one  should  go,  or 
you  should,  in  any  way,  be  severed  from  what  you  con- 
sider your  own,  repining  is  detrim.ental  to  all  concerned. 
It  serves  to  make  the  breach  seem  wider,  and  prevents 
both  the  one  grieved  for  and  the  one  who  grieves  from 
rising.    Sorrowing  holds  all  who  are  touched  by  its  influ- 


SADNESS,    MELANCHOLY,    ETC.  155 

ence  down  to  its  own  plane,  which  is  the  realm  of  sin 
and  darkness.  Under  any  and  all  circumstances  conquer 
your  selfish  clinging  to  the  thing,  condition,  place  or 
person  loved,  and  any  form  of  grief  because  of  changes 
wrought. 

It  is  necessary  to  remember  that  happiness  does  not 
come  from  any  external  conditions  or  relationship,  but 
that  is  the  state  of  the  pure  nature— the  natural  sup- 
plement of  self-possession,  and  must  endure  through 
all  variations  attendant  upon  human  existence.  A  de- 
termined and  persistent  effort  may  have  to  be  made  to 
gain  and  maintain  this  attitude,  but  it  is  absolutely 
necessary  to  progression. 

After  the  spirit  has  yielded  to  many  disappointments 
and  trials,  each  doing  its  part  toward  discouraging  and 
saddening  the  nature,  the  spirit  often  enters  a  perma- 
nently sorrowful  state,  which  in  its  extreme  is  melan- 
choly. Melancholy  means  that  the  individual  has  set- 
tled into  its  darkened  conditions,  through  which  little 
or  no  light  penetrates. 

There  are  people  in  the  world  who  are  saddened,  or 
even  melancholy,  not  because  of  ungratified  desire,  nor 
because  of  any  special  set  of  circumstances  ;  but  because 
there  is  a  sense  of  discontent  with  all  the  conditions  of 
human  life,  and  especially  with  the  errors  of  their  own 
natures.  A  spirit  of  this  class  is  sufficiently  awake  to 
see  that  things  in  general  are  wrong,  but  it  is  not  con- 
scious of  the  reason  ;  nor  of  the  way  of  indixidual 
emancipation.      Such   an  one  may  grope  through   life 


156  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

with  a  heavy  heart,  restless  and  discontented,  and  he 
may  also  sink  into  darkness  of  settled  melancholy. 

If  one  who  becomes  thus  conscious  that  life  is  a  per- 
version would  extend  his  vision  to  reach  the  causes, 
and  then  set  to  work  to  overcome  them  in  his  own  na- 
ture, instead  of  sinking  into  melancholy  he  would  rise 
into  gladness.  When  the  spirit,  for  any  reason,  has 
reached  the  point  of  melancholy,  it  is  difficult  to  arouse 
it.  Many  more  methods  fail  than  succeed,  and  usually 
such  cases  can  be  reached  only  by  the  help  of  one  who 
has  risen.  Even  with  such  help  there  are  extreme  con- 
ditions which  may  baffle  human  power.  If  the  one 
who  is  melancholy  from  the  desolation  attendant  upon 
partial  awakening  could  be  properly  dealt  with,  and 
shown  the  way  to  rise,  there  would  be  much  ground  for 
hope  of  his  recovery. 

Peevishness  is  a  mixture  of  irritaiblity  and  sadness. 
It  is  a  puerile  state  of  mind.  Where  it  exists  there  is 
little  power  of  endurance  and  no  patience.  Like  other 
states  it  has  many  causes,  but  often  developes  when  the 
nature  has  become  petty— interested  in  and  influenced 
by  many  trifles,  and  hence  peevish  by  the  thwarting  of 
petty  desires.  Peevishness  may  also  grow  through 
much  indulgence — desires  gratifled  by  one's  self  or 
through  another.  It  is  often  attendant  upon  sickness 
or  old  age,  but  it  is  not  justifiable  under  any  circum- 
stances, and  it  is  only  possible  because  of  many  prior 
mistakes  which  have  led  to  it. 

Usefulness  is  one  of  the  quickest  and  surest  helps  for 
any  of  the  above  difficulties.     One  who  has  many  duties 


SADNESS,    MELANCHOLY,    ETC.  157 

to  engage  his  time  should  rejoice,  and  use  them  to  the 
utmost  to  promote  his  progression.  Forget  your  sor- 
rows in  useful  activity.  This  is  the  best  method  to  be- 
gin with  in  overcoming  sorrow  ;  but  be  sure,  as  you 
work,  that  your  mind  does  not  wander.  Under  all  cir- 
cumstances, and  at  all  tim.es,  the  mind  should  be  wholly 
centered  on  the  work  at  hand.  One  should  be  perfectly 
conscious  of  every  act  of  his  life,  and  never  allow  him- 
self to  do  one  thing  and  think  another.  This  is  what 
it  means  to  live  in  your  body.  For  no  reason  are  you 
justified  in  allowing  yourself  to  be  entertained  by  idle 
thinking,  dreaming,  or  building  air  castles,  seeing  vis- 
ions, or  by  any  kind  of  fanciful  ideas.  Neither  should 
you  enter  any  kind  of  meditation,  for  any  purpose,  or 
allow  yourself  to  float  off  onto  spiritual  planes. 

When  the  times  of  rest  come,  one  should  be  still.  If 
the  physical  requires  rest,  then  be  physically  as  well  as 
mentally  still— at  no  time  should  the  mind  be  unneces- 
sarily active.  A  good  practice  for  times  of  rest  is  to  sit 
or  lie  in  perfect  physical  and  mental  quiescence,  relaxed 
and  still.  In  this  state  the  whole  organism  rests  and 
recuperates.  The  mind  should  always  be  quieted  before 
sinking  into  sleep.  There  is  no  way  to  so  naturally  and 
quickly  induce  sleep  as  by  refusing  to  think.  Persist- 
ence in  this  effort  until  it  is  accomplished  is  the  cure 
for  insomnia. 

Sinking  to  sleep  with  a  quiet  mind  will  help  to  pre- 
vent dreams.  The  most  refreshing  and  the  only  nat- 
ural sleep  is  dreamless.  Your  conscious  wakeful  state 
will  largely  regulate  your  condition  during  sleep,     A 


158  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

quiet,  well  controlled  mind  during  wakeful  hours  will 
insure  peaceful  slumber.  In  fact,  a  mind  becalmed  by 
a  keenly  conscious  spirit  is  the  cure  for  all  mental  and 
spiritual  ills  and  many  bodily  ones.  Too  much  cannot 
be  said  to  impress  the  student  of  this  philosophy  with 
the  importance  of  ceasing,  at  will,  to  think. 

If  desires,  habits  or  passions  would  hold  you,  refuse 
to  allow  your  mind  to  work  as  they  dictate.  Hold  it 
absolutely  still.  If  anger,  irritability  or  criticism  as- 
sert themselves,  refuse  to  think.  Keep  absolutely  still. 
If  fear  and  anxiety  come  your  way,  banish  from  your 
mind  every  suggestion  accompanying  them. 

Sadness  and  peevishness  must  be  treated  in  the  same 
way.  Refuse  to  allow  your  mind  to  respond  to  any  er- 
roneous vibration,  and  your  victory  is  complete ;  your 
permanent  and  unalloyed  happiness  is  assured. 


INSTRUCTION  XXVIII 


PAST  AND   FUTURE 


TTTHY  do  the  past  and  future— filled  with  specters  of 
^  '      lost  joy,  opportunities,  or  wrongs  committed,  on 
the  one  side,  and  the  possibilities  of  waiting  doom,  on 
the  other— stand  out  so  prominently  in  human  life? 

By  this  time  the  mind  of  the  one  who  has  followed  us 
must  make  immediate  response— because  the  funda- 
mentals and  methods  of  man's  life  are  false  and 
artificial. 

Man  has  in  the  past  rooted  his  tree  of  life  in  such 
poor  soil  as  to  make  the  blossoms  of  ttie  present  defec- 
tive and  the  fruit  of  the  future  uncertain.  When  the 
nature  is  pure,  and  thoughts,  words  and  deeds  are  gov- 
erned thereby,  the  roots  of  the  life  tree  are  well  nour- 
ished, the  blossoms  perfect  and  the  fruit  assured. 

Had  human  nature  thus  preserved  itself,  its  begin- 
nings would  have  been  pure,  its  activities  wise,  and  it.** 
results  wholesome,  however  varied  and  manifold  in 
manifestation.  With  no  conditions  arising  from  perver- 
sions of  nature  to  be  regretted  or  forestalled,  man  would 


160  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

have  lived  each  day,  each  hour,  in  peace,  with  no  reason 
for  dragging  with  him  the  past,  and  no  necessity  for 
looking  into  the  future. 

Everywhere  in  nature  life  forces  are  given  to  the 
present  stage  of  development,  with  no  account  taken  of 
the  past  or  the  future.  When  there  is  no  interference 
the  perfection  of  each  phase  or  step  insures  the  perfec- 
tion of  the  whole  when  completed.  Had  there  been  no 
mistakes  made,  thus  would  nature  have  worked  with  all 
life  on  the  globe.  Today  the  earth  would  have  been 
beautiful  with  myriad  perfected  expressions,  and  over 
all  would  have  been  shining  the  glory  of  an  exalted  hu- 
man nature,  resplendent  with  the  reflected  light  of 
Higher  Planes. 

Notwithstanding  present  darkened  conditions,  the 
Progressive  Life  must  be  centered  in  the  present.  Di- 
viding one's  time  among  the  three  stages— past,  present 
and  future— retards  growth.  To  the  one  who  chooses 
the  natural  life  the  past  is  immediately  lost  in  the  inter- 
ests of  the  present.  And  because  the  interests  of  the 
present  are  constructive  one  is  indifferent  as  to  the 
future. 

Depending  upon  individual  willingness  and  effort,  the 
threads  of  each  darkened  life  must  be  picked  up  and 
readjusted  as  nearly  as  possible  in  accord  with  the  orig- 
inal plan.  Begin  now— do  today  that  which  your  hand 
finds  to  do,  and  to  the  best  of  your  ability.  Let  no  feel- 
ings govern  you  ;  keep  keenly  sensible  ;  quiet  your  mind, 
and  preserve  an  undisturbed  state.     Be  just  as  nearly 


PAST  AND   FUTURE  161 

rig-ht,  do  just  as  nearly  right,  each  moment,  as  you  can 
conceive.  As  this  you  do,  force  and  strength  will  be 
given  you  to  make  your  best  better— thus  your  growth 
is  assured.  This  attitude  will  obviate  regret  for  the 
past  and  prevent  fear  for  the  future.  You  do  not  need 
to  be  told  that  brooding  over  the  past  is  useless,  and 
only  for  a  few  specific  reasons  should  one  re-enter  it  at 
all.  Valuable  lessons  may  sometimes  be  learned  from 
past  experiences.  Experience  is  the  lash  that  falls  be- 
cause of  disobedience.  In  the  worldly  life,  if  one  gains 
any  wisdom  it  must  be  through  experience,  which  is  the 
long,  hard  way.  In  the  Progressive  Life  one  may  be 
guided  past  the  shoals  by  the  light  of  the  awakened 
consciousness.  Past  experiences  cannot  injure  your 
nature  or  prevent  your  growth  if  you  resolve  to  keep  the 
present  clear  and  pure.  If  you  sanction  any  error  of  the 
past,  through  your  justification  you  preserve  the  influ- 
ence. If  any  feeling  that  governed  you  in  the  past 
comes  up  with  the  memory  of  the  circumstance  that 
gave  rise  to  the  feeling  its  power  is  renewed  and  you 
are  injured  by  its  influence  now  as  then. 

If  you  retain  any  feeling  or  there  remains  with  you  any 
influence  on  account  of  past  events,  it  will  be  necessary 
for  you  to  call  up  the  past  and  free  yourself  from  this 
condition.  You  must  be  as  careful  to  denounce  all  past 
wrong  doing  as  you  are  that  of  the  present.  When  you 
have  thus  disconnected  yourself,  however  blotted  and 
stained  the  pages  of  your  life  book,  you  may  close  them 
forever  and   turn  a  fresh   leaf.      You   are  then   held 


162  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

accountable  not  for  the  misdeeds  of  the  past,  but  for 
whatever  bhirs  the  pure  whiteness  of  the  page  before 
you. 

Because,  at  best,  one  is  somewhat  involved  in  worldly 
conditions,  more  or  less  planning  and  preparation  are 
necessary  to  insure  satisfactory  results ;  but  plans  laid 
before  time  for  action  are  both  useless  and  apt  to  mis- 
carry. When  future  events  depend  upon  present  acts, 
then  plan  and  carry  out  present  conditions  to  bring 
required  results.  If  you  are  not  required  to  take  action 
in  unison  with  your  plan  the  planning  is  unnecesary. 
Do,  each  moment,  what  you  have  to  do  with  an  intelli- 
gent view  of  future  needs. 

There  are  times  when  one  becomes  conscious  of  coming 
events.  Such  premonitions  may  come  either  from  vari- 
ous apparent  forerunning  indications  or  from  the  awak- 
ening of  the  intelligence  to  read  the  subtler  forecasts. 
One  is  thereby  enabled  to  take  action  according  to  the 
necessities  of  the  case.  All  these  acts  are  lawful,  but, 
unless  for  a  definite  and  necessary  purpose,  one  should 
not  peer  into  the  future,  nor  look  forward  to  any  event. 
Anxiety  concerning  either  the  past  or  the  future  is  never 
permissible. 

If  you  carefully  guard  your  present  from  evils  which 
through  your  higher  development  you  have  power  to 
prevent,  you  will  receive  sufficient  force  and  wisdom  to 
master  your  future  when  your  future  comes  before  you 
and  the  time  for  action  is  ripe. 

With  the  foregoing  exceptions  you  are  admonished  to 


PAST  AND   FUTURE  1G3 

close  the  door  of  the  past,  neither  thinking  nor  talking 
of  it,  and  to  leave  the  future  to  be  developed  from  the 
purity,  wisdom  and  power  by  which  you  regulate  the 
present. 

In  this  way  the  individual  life  may  become  established, 
flourish,  and  yield  unto  fuller  and  richer  expressions  of 
being. 


INSTRUCTION  XXIX 


SUICIDE 


rpHE  two  evils  which  we  are  now  about  to  discuss 
are  too  criminally  wrong  to  be  placed  under  the 
head  of  the  respectable  sins  already  analyzed,  but 
they  do  not  come  sufficiently  under  general  condemna- 
tion, nor  are  they  fully  enough  understood,  to  enable  us 
to  pass  them  by  with  only  the  references  that  we  have 
given  to  others  of  their  class.  These  evils  are  viz.— 
suicide  and  adultery.  Both  are  crimes  ;  but  the  first  is 
obviously  beyond  the  reach  of  the  penal  code,  and  the 
other  is  almost  universally  excused  from  it.  That  there 
are  still  extant  moral  laws  limiting  both  these  crimes 
is  true  ;  but  that  the  influence  of  said  laws  is  growing 
visibly  weaker  is  also  incontrovertible. 

Because  the  conditions  which  lead  to  suicide  are  not 
generally  understood  and  the  state  after  death  so  little 
known,  and  because  the  pressure  that  the  world  brings 
to  bear  is  often  so  severe,  suicide  is  not  so  rigorously 
denounced  as  formerly.  Regarding  the  punishment  for 
suicide,  as  in  all  cases  where  nature  is  defied,  one  can- 
not escape  the  self-inflicted  penalty  of  revolt  against 
her  laws.     One  who  severs  his  own  life  from  the  body 


SUICIDE  1G5 

as  ruthlessly  outrages  nature  as  one  who  kills  another. 

It  should  be  self-evident  and  it  is  true  that  the  condi- 
tions arising  from  contravention  of  nature  do  not  end 
vv^ith  the  dissolution  of  the  body.  Hov^ever  brutally  the 
world  may  apply  the  lash,  the  real  causes  of  the  suffer- 
ing and  desperation  that  determine  a  person  to  take  his 
own  life  are  vested  in  the  nature,  and  the  death  of  the 
body  does  not  change  the  state  of  the  spirit.  What- 
ever colors  the  nature  coheres  to  the  spirit  and  goes 
with  it.  So  did  one  not  lose  by  destroying  his  body  he 
could  not  gain  thereby.  But  the  loss  to  a  suicide  is 
almost  irreparable.  The  fact  that  a  person  has  reached 
the  point  of  self-murder  is  sufficient  evidence  that  the 
spirit  is  submerged  in  dense  darkness.  However  ex- 
treme and  cruel  the  circumstances  that  goad  their  vic- 
tim toward  this  fatal  act,  such  circumstances  are  the 
result  of  a  false  life. 

One  who  finds  himself  thus  tempted  should  remember 
that  life  in  the  body  is  a  blessed  opportunity  for  the  de- 
velopment of  the  whole  being,  and  whatever  the  stress 
or  complication  of  noxious  conditions,  it  is  the  duty  of 
every  individual  to  learn  his  lessons  and  make  his  en- 
vironments, and  his  experiences  serve  to  improve  and 
strengthen  his  character.  Never,  in  cowardice  or  des- 
pair, turn  your  back  upon  an  evil  which  attacks  you. 

Face  it  with  a  will  and  determination  to  conquer  or 
endure  it  to  the  end.  If  you  can  see  no  way  out  of  a 
difficulty  without  sacrificing  your  character,  patient  en- 
durance will  beautify  your  nature  and  enrich  your  soul. 
It  will  also  insure  a  final  end  to  suffering.     An  unre- 


166  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

lenting  determination  to  bravely  and  unrepiningly  en- 
dure the  thing  one  cannot  help,  will  calm  the  mind, 
soothe  the  spirit  and  prepare  it  to  receive  the  light. 
Light  shining  into  a  life,  thus  tempered,  will  guide  one 
to  wise  action  and  ultimately  lead  into  paths  of  peace 
and  gladness.  A  cowardly  act,  doing  violence  to  na- 
ture, will  but  plunge  one  more  deeply  into  despair. 

The  spirit  of  one  who  suicides  must  necessarily  be 
distorted,  benighted  and  naked.  To  be  naked  means 
that  it  has  squandered  its  soul,  or  spirit  body.  Such  a 
spirit  has  lost  not  only  the  protection  of  the  physical 
body,  but,  shocked  and  bewildered,  it  goes  out  denuded 
of  its  soul  covering,  defenceless  and  quivering  with  the 
suffering  caused  by  exposure ;  or.  if  stunned,  none  the 
less  subject  to  the  nefarious  conditions  of  darkened 
planes.  To  a  low  plane  it  must  gravitate  because  of 
both  the  m.anner  of  its  earth-life  and  the  self-inflicted 
blow  which  severed  the  spirit  from  the  body.  The 
state  of  a  spirit  thus  submerged  is  all  but  hopeless. 

Even  as  there  are  restorative  influences  at  work  on 
the  earth,  trying  to  reach  and  save  the  individual  from 
evil,  so  there  are  forces  on  other  planes  engaged  in 
restoring  darkened  and  denuded  spirits  to  the  normal 
state.  In  this  fact  lies  the  hope  of  the  spirit  which  has 
for  any  reason  allowed  itself  to  be  drawn  into  the  cur- 
rents of  retrogression. 

While  touching  this  point  of  life  after  death,  we  wish 
to  say  that  through  self -destructive  agencies  man  has 
lost  his  finer  senses  of  perception  and  subtler  faculties 
which  should  sufifice  to  make  him  cognizant  of  higher 


SUICIDE  167 

planes,  and  that  these  rarified  sensibilities  are  just  as 
much  a  natural  part  of  the  human  organism  as  the  in- 
ferior residue  he  has  managed  to  preserve.  Out  of  this 
darkened  state  certain  phases  of  intellectual  develop- 
ment have  arisen  from  which  are  formulated  theories 
and  conclusions  to  the  effect  that  life  ends  with  the 
death  of  the  body.  That  immortality  is  superstition, 
that  the  earth-expression,  misshapen,  corrupted,  tem- 
porary farcical,  tragic  and  hideous  as  it  has  become,  when 
viewed  in  all  its  aspects,  is  the  beginning  and  end  of 
human  life,  marks  the  ultimatum  to  which  the  intellect 
has  been  able  to  arrive  during  all  the  ages  of  artificial 
development. 

If  intellectual  acquirement  did  not  preclude  a  pure 
intelligence,  and  if  theories  and  conclusions,  resulting 
from  m.ental  accum.ulations,  did  not  end  in  confusion 
and  darkness,  all  who  are  seeking  the  light  would  see 
that  the  dissolution  of  the  body  does  not  mean  death, 
but  a  change  from  one  plane  to  another.  There  is 
really  but  one  death,  and  that  is  the  sinking  of  the 
spirit  into  evil  states  in  which  it  loses  its  indentity  for 
varying  periods  of  time.  The  length  of  time  during 
which  it  is  thus  enshrouded  depends  upon  the  degree 
of  its  submergence  and  upon  the  influences  that  can  be 
brought  to  bear  for  its  restoration.  The  death  of  the 
body  is  but  the  severing  of  the  outer  covering,  which 
belongs  to  this— the  physical  — plane.  In  the  case  of 
the  normal  individual,  when  this  takes  place,  the  soul 
or  spirit  body,  mind  and  spirit  are  readjusted  to  new 
conditions  on  higher  planes. 


168  THE   PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

We  are  not  attempting  to  prove  these  statements, 
but  none  the  less  dare  to  make  them.  We  further  de- 
clare that  the  time  shall  surely  come  when  no  person 
will  dispute  the  immortality  of  the  spirit  of  man.  This 
day  will  come  because  facts  pertaining  to  the  continuity 
of  individual  life  will  be  irrefutably  demonstrated. 
Even  as  many  heretofore  hidden  forces  are  now  not 
only  proven  to  exist  but  are  being  practically  utilized, 
so  these  facts  will  become  apparent  through  many  ave- 
nues and  in  many  ways.  Through  scientific  research 
many  truths  have  been  twisted,  many  facts  covered, 
and  many  hidden  realities  partially  revealed.  Science 
may  find  a  way  to  a  fact  or  set  of  circumstances  that 
will  unquestionably  point  to  immortality.  Even  should 
this  be  so,  by  whatever  artificial  methods  man  may 
stumble  onto  hidden  treasures,  they  can  be  accurately 
and  fully  revealed  only  to  those  who  live  the  life  that 
unites  the  spirit  with  the  wealth  of  nature.  One  who 
fulfills  the  requirements  of  the  Progressive  Life  will 
know  the  purpose  of  this  and  its  eternal  continuity. 


INSTRUCTION  XXX 


ADULTERY 


TDECAUSE  of  the  ignorance  of  their  own  natures  and 
-'-^  the  hold  that  desires,  throuj?h  indulgence,  have 
gained  over  the  people  of  the  world,  the  moral  law  that 
restricts  adultery  has  become  more  of  a  pretense  than 
a  reality. 

Of  all  evils,  adultery  is  for  many  reasons  the  most  far- 
reaching,  the  most  deadly,  the  most  justified,  and  there- 
fore, deserving  of  the  greatest  condemnation.  We  do 
not  speak  of  this  evil  merely  in  its  more  limited  sense, 
which  confines  it  to  the  disregard  of  the  sacredness  of 
the  marriage  relationship.  We  apply  the  word  adultery 
to  the  degradation  of  the  creative  principle  in  deed,  word 
and  thought. 

As  has  been  indicated  in  a  previous  lesson,  whenever 
the  creative  force  is  set  in  motion  for  any  purpose  other 
than  that  of  producing  offspring,  even  though  sanctioned 
by  temporal  law,  the  creative  principle  has  been  dese- 
crated. With  this  position  there  is  no  possible  compro- 
mise for  one  who  wishes  to  rise.  So  long  as  there  is  in 
the  mind  a  thought,  or  in  the  nature  a  vibration  that 


170  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

conflicts  with  the  law  of  chastity,  the  individual  is  pol- 
luted and  darkened  thereby. 

That  the  defiling  of  the  creative  principle  is  protected 
and  justified  by  both  the  written  and  moral  code  is  one 
of  the  strongest  reasons  why  it  is  so  universally  and 
deadly  destructive.  Another  reason  is  that  the  men  of 
the  world  are  under  practically  no  moral  obligation 
which  restricts  them  from  unlimited  debauchery  of  this, 
—life's  holiest  instinct.  That  there  should  exist,  either 
in  theory  or  practice,  any  different  application  of  the 
moral  law  to  women  than  to  men,  is  but  a  subterfuge 
through  which  free  scope  is  given  to  the  indulgence  of 
the  lowest  phases  of  lust  and  licentiousness  that  blacken 
human  nature.  Neither  the  acts  nor  the  natures  of 
men  and  women  should  differ  in  any  of  the  essential 
qualifications  of  a  sweet,  pure  and  beautiful  life.  For 
all  hum.an  beings  there  is  one  moral  code  ;  one  standard 
of  perfection— none  are  excused. 

Adultery  is  so  insidious  in  its  nature  and  its  ramifica- 
tions are  so  extended  that  its  destructiveness  cannot  be 
overestimated  ;  nor  can  one  tithe  of  its  vitiating  influence 
or  resulting  depravity  be  here  shown  or  described.  Suf- 
fice to  say :  it  has  spread  its  blackened  pall  over  the 
human  race  ;  it  insinuates  its  presence  into  the  most  sa- 
cred places  ;  it  tarnishes  youth  and  debases  old  age. 
Leaving  its  traces  upon  every  generation,  breathing 
its  fetted  breath  into  almost  every  soul,  it  strangles 
progression  and  corrupts  and  degrades  human  life. 

Nature's  mightiest  force  for  the  rebuilding  of  human- 
ity to  magnificent  proportions  has  been  perverted  into  the 


ADULTERY  171 

strongest  agency  for  its  destruction.  The  principle  that 
was  by  nature  intended  to  operate  to  promote  the  hu- 
man race  from  its  beginnings  of  childlike  purity  and 
simplicity  to  a  state  second  only  to  the  angels  of  heaven, 
has  through  its  violation  served  to  aid  its  descent  into  a 
condition  second  only  to  the  benighted  spirits  of  the 
planes  of  darkness. 


INSTRUCTION  XXXI 


SUMMARY   REMARKS 


TTTE  have  now  touched  on  all  the  types  of  human 
^  '  weaknesses  that  are  most  prevalent,  at  the  same 
time  most  justified  in  the  human  mind,  and,  with  all,  the 
least  understood.  We  have  chosen  to  give  more  detailed 
analysis  to  the  milder  forms  of  evil,  and  to  those  phases 
that  assume  to  be  something  better  than  that  which 
actually  exists  in  the  real  nature  of  the  evil  defined. 
For  example  :  ambition  versus  aspiration  ;  self-import- 
ance versus  self-respect ;  criticism  versus  analysis  ;  con- 
tention versus  argument ;  and  gratification  of  desires 
versus  the  wealth  of  nature.  All  of  these,  and  others, 
have  been  particularized  sufficiently  to  show  the  false 
from  the  true,  and  to  enable  one— who  sees  the  wisdom 
of  so  doing— to  rid  his  nature  of  that  which  is  erroneous, 
and  to  thereby  make  room  and  opportunity  for  the  high- 
er attributes  to  grow. 

We  have  not  specifically  dealt  with  the  grossest  or  the 
most  extreme  forms  of  evil,  such  as  malice,  thievery, 
robbery,  murder,  and  other  crimes  and  horrors,  into 
which  such  large  portions  of  the  race  have  sunken.  For 
several  reasons  it  would  not  serve  our  purpose  to  do  so.  , 


SUMMARY   REMARKS  173 

Firstly,  there  is  no  object  in  analysing  an  evil  that  is 
already  understood,  condemned  and  limited  by  either 
written  or  unwritten  law. 

Secondly,  much  time,  energy  and  money  are  being 
spent  toward  checking,  controlling  and  overcoming  these 
lowest  elements.  Work  is  progressing  in  this  direction 
as  well  as  it  can  under  existing  conditions.  As  people 
engaged  in  reform  work  themselves  grow  to  a  higher 
standard,  they  will  receive  more  light,  act  with  greater 
wisdom  and  increase  their  power  to  accomplish  their 
purposes. 

Thirdly,  it  must  follow  that  he  who  weeds  from  his 
nature  the  lesser  errors  will  be  incapable  of  entertain- 
ing or  committing  any  flagrant  form  of  evil. 

Fourthly,  we  are  especially  appealing  to  the  individual 
who  is  weary  of  present  conditions,  who  is  seeking 
something  better,  who  is  willing  to  exchange  old  meth- 
ods for  new  and  who  is  capable  of  rising  to  a  high  stand- 
ard. Among  this  class  of  spirits  there  may  be  those 
who  have  become  deeply  involved  in  evil,  but  any  indi- 
vidual who  sinks  below  worldly  standards  sins  in  the 
more  atrocious  ways,  not  because  he  does  not  know 
better,  but  because  he  has  allowed  his  desires  and  pas- 
sions to  carry  him  to  extremes,  and  he  ultimately  reaches 
the  point  where  shame  is  gone  and  conscience  dead- 
ened. The  spirit  that  cries  out  of  this  darkness  needs 
no  analysis  of  the  excesses  he  has  known.  He  needs 
to  be  aroused  to  action  and  helped  to  free  himself  from 
habits  and  obsessing  passions.  He  needs  also  to  be 
shown  that  the  errors  that  are  tolerated  in  respectable 


174  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

society,    corrupt  the  nature,  and  always   precede    the 
lowest  states. 

We  now  draw  the  curtain  on  the  delineation  of  the 
evils  which  are  combining  to  destroy  mankind,  and 
pass  to  pleasanter  scenes — the  attributes  of  the  natural 
man,  and  the  results,  endowments  and  possibilities  of  a 
pure  life. 


INSTRUCTION  XXXII 


ASPIRATION 


TNTER WOVEN  throughout  these  instructions  are  re- 
-"-  peated  references  to  the  light  from  Higher  Planes 
and  the  Powers  which  operate  through  nature.  It 
forms  no  part  of  our  present  purpose,  nor  does  this 
work  in  any  way  call  for  either  proof  of  nor  any  at- 
tempt to  describe  the  Higher  Powers,  from  whom 
earth's  people  receive  guidance  and  protection. 

That  such  Powers  exist ;  what  they  are  and  how  they 
operate,  can  only  be  known  to  those  who  fulfil  the  re- 
quirements for  awakening  to  such  comprehension.  We 
will  say,  however,  that  if  there  had  been  no  restraining 
hand  at  the  helm,  the  human  race,  long  ere  this,  would 
have  been  self-destroyed.  Even  as  all  forms  of  life 
upon  the  earth  are  dependent  upon  the  sun,  and  even 
as  they  would  perish  without  its  light,  so  it  is  true  that 
if  the  earth  were  wholly  disconnected  from  the  Planes 
of  Light  to  which  it  is  subject,  humanity  would  perish 
in  its  own  darkness.  Had  man  never  gone  astray,  all 
his  activities  would  have  been  under  the  full  light  of 
Higher  Powers.     With  the  development  of  the  evils  in 


176  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

human  nature,  an  atmosphere  more  and  more  dense 
has  been  created,  through  which  it  is  difficult  for  the 
hght  to  penetrate. 

The  reason  that  the  human  race  has  not  sunken  to 
the  depths  of  its  own  evils  and  to  destruction,  is  be- 
cause the  light  has  never  been  quite  obscured  and  be- 
cause, at  times,  great  rifts  have  been  in  the  darkness 
by  the  great  souls  who  have  been  born  to  keep  the  con- 
nection. These  messengers  have  left  behind  them  cer- 
tain precepts  so  vital  and  poignant,  that,  despite  all  the 
twisting  and  veiling  to  which  they  have  been  subject, 
they  have  retained  their  influence  for  the  betterment  of 
human  nature 

Because  of  the  light  that  man  has  received  from 
the  Higher  Planes,  he  has  gained  all  his  abihty  and 
power.  One  important  fact  must  here  be  considered. 
By  the  light  all  forms  of  life  are  set  in  motion  and 
grow  irrespective  of  their  qualifications.  While  under 
the  influence  of  light,  nature,  uninterfered  with  becomes 
more  beautiful;  all  her  distortions  and  malformations 
also  gain  vitality  and  power.  So,  as  the  ages  have 
passed  and  man  has  received  light,  he  has  gained  power 
to  promote  both  good  and  evil.  Good  has  been  aug- 
mented and  evil  licensed,  and  side  by  side  both  have 
grown  to  greater  proportions. 

As  human  intelligence  has  awakened,  it  has  been 
diverted  to  the  accumulation  of  knowledge  and  the 
manipulation  of  conditions  to  serve  selfish  ends. 
Repeatedly  has  this  process  reached  its  climax  and 
destruction  has  followed.     It  must  always  come  in  nat- 


ASPIRATION  177 

ural  sequence,  that  whenever  evil  elements  grow  un- 
checked they  will  predominate  —  when  they  prevail 
they  will  control  and  ultimately  destroy. 

The  question  to  be  answered  by  the  individual  is— 
which  side  has  the  ascendency  in  his  life,  good  or  evil? 

Is  your  life  satisfactory? 

Are  you  embodying  in  your  own  nature  your  ideals  of 
a  noble  character?  Have  the  methods  you  have  hereto- 
fore pursued  led  you  to  this  end,  or  brought  you  happy 
results?  If  you  must  answer  "no"  to  these  questiors 
and  you  find  your  life  centered  far  below  your  aspira- 
tions, then  do  not  fear  to  make  changes,  however  radi- 
cal, which  are  necessary  to  the  fulfillment  of  your  ideals. 

Are  your  thoughts,  words  and  deeds  governed  by  that 
which  is  purest  and  best  in  your  nature,  or  do  you  re- 
peatedly descend  below  your  own  level?  That  which 
you  are  at  your  highest  point  is  the  real  standard  of  your 
character.  At  this  place  through  all  external  changes 
you  should  rem.ain.  When  you  have  subjected  your 
whole  nature  to  the  best  there  is  in  it,  and  have  learned 
to  maintain  the  standard  you  sometimes  touch,  you  have 
taken  your  first  step.  The  second  step  is  to  lift  your 
whole  character  to  equal  your  ideals.  What  you  aspire 
to  be  you  can  attain,  so  far  as  the  development  of  your 
spiritual  organism  is  concerned.  Care  must  be  taken 
not  to  confuse  aspiration  with  desire.  Aspiration  points 
to  the  exaltation  resulting  from  the  purification  of  tl:e 
spirit,  and  not  to  conditions  or  endowments  which  may 
follow. 

Your  ideals  should  be  vested  in  the  higher  attributes. 


178  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

and  should  not  extend  to  your  activities  or  your  envi- 
ronment. What  you  will  do,  how  you  will  act,  or  how 
you  will  be  placed  when  you  have  risen,  is  not  your 
present  business.  Possible  or  probable  results  should 
not  engage  your  attention.  We  refer  you  to  the  instruc- 
tion on  duty.  Do  that  which  is  necessary  under  exist- 
ing circumstances,  and  to  the  best  of  your  ability.  Main- 
tain a  contented  spirit,  an  undisturbed  mind,  and  a  keen 
sensibility.  Let  your  primal  object  be  to  grow,  with  all 
your  aspirations  and  ideals  centered  in  an  unwavering 
effort  toward  that  end.  Be  always  calm,  sweet,  serene, 
alive  and  wide-aivake,  contented  and  hajjpy. 

When  your  mind  has  been  clarified  from  its  theories, 
opinions  and  ideas;  when  your  nature  has  been  freed 
from  desires,  selfishness  and  other  errors,  sufficiently 
for  the  light  from  Higher  Planes  to  illuminate  your  con- 
sciousness, those  things  which  heretofore  have  seemed 
valuable  and  necessary  to  you  will  no  longer  attract  you. 
As  you  progress,  people,  places,  things  and  conditions 
will  become  less  and  less  important  to  your  happiness. 
Then,  as  always,  you  will  perform  the  duties  that  belong 
to  the  time,  place  and  conditions  at  hand,  and  have  no 
concern  as  to  the  manner  of  them. 

When  you  are  v/orking  to  advance  your  life  to  equal 
your  ideals  be  careful  that  your  ideals  do  not  settle  at 
any  point  below  the  standard  of  a  perfected  nature. 
Each  form  of  life  tends  toward  the  state  of  perfection 
possible  to  its  kind;  or,  through  contravention,  growth 
is  arrested,  and  the  trend  is  immediately  changed  tow- 
ard degeneration.     It  is  just  the  same  with  your  own 


ASPIRATION  179 

development — you  must  either  progreSvS  to  the  apex  of 
human  excellence,  or,  from  any  point  at  which  you  check 
growth,  you  will  retrograde. 

Again  we  are  brought  to  note  the  third  movement 
to  which  humanity  is  particularly  prone.  This  move- 
ment does  not  contradict  the  fact  that  life  must  tend  to 
progress  or  retrograde,  but  is  caused  by  the  successive 
repetition  of  both  tendencies  which  sends  life  round  in 
a  circle.  The  whole  history  of  human  life  is  marked  by 
the  repeated  rising  and  falling,  progression  and  retro- 
gression of  nations,  institutions  and  individuals.  If 
conditions  of  human  life  were  correctly  read  it  would 
be  seen  that  this  circular  movement  is  continuous,  with 
portions  of  humanity  always  ascending  and  descending. 
There  are,  on  earth  today,  fallen  nations  which  were 
once  strong  and  powerful.  There  are  other  nations  that 
are  scarcely  more  than  beginning  their  ascent.  There 
are  others  that  are  about  to  touch,  or  have  just  touched 
their  zenith.  There  are  others  struggling  in  the  clutches 
of  decay. 

So  far,  no  nation  of  the  past  or  present  has  risen  be- 
yond the  point  where  the  destructive  forces  culminate 
and  send  it  on  the  dov/nward  path.  This  is  so  because 
the  same  deadly  agencies  are  always  allowed  to  work 
unchecked,  and,  finally  gaining  the  mastery,  the  same 
results  follow.  There  ever  has  been,  and  is  now,  the 
bitter  conflict  between  good  and  evil,  and  so  the  fight 
must  continue  until  human  nature  is  sufliciently  purified 
to  gain  the  ascendancy  over  evil  and  force  it  into  subjec- 
tion.    This  cannot  be  done  with  humanity  as  a  whole ; 


180  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

it  has  gone  too  far.  It  must  be  accomplished  with  indi- 
viduals who  are  not  too  deeply  submerged  to  heed  the 
call. 

Each  one  who  so  lives  that  his  life  shall  be  illuminated 
from  the  Planes  of  Light  will  become  a  center  through 
whom  the  forces  and  influences  of  restoration  may- 
operate  to  conquer  evil. 

One  who  has  purified  his  nature  may  be  compared  to 
a  dynamo  which  generates  a  subtle  but  powerful  force. 
Under  the  guidance  of  wisdom  such  a  force  may  set  into 
operation  vast  mechanisms  for  the  production  of  many 
form.s  of  good  over  which  no  evil  shall  ultimately  pre- 
vail. In  this  way  the  work  of  restoring  such  portions 
of  the  human  race  as  can  be  reached  may  be  powerfully 
reinforced  by  every  individual  who  fulfills  the  require- 
ments for  progression. 


INSTRUCTION     XXXIII 


HOPE 


/^NE  of  the  strongrest  factors  for  good  in  human  life  is 
^^  the  invincible  spirit  of  hope.  Through  all  the  long 
ages  of  suffering  and  repeated  desolations,  hope  has 
burned  undimmed  in  the  midst  of  the  darkness.  That 
there  is  something  better  than  has  yet  been  known  is 
an  idea  that  dominates  the  largest  part  of  the  human 
race  and  spurs  it  to  repeated  activity  in  the  face  of 
manifold  disappointments  and  failures. 

Notwithstanding  that  hope  is  a  most  salutary  influence 
and  that  it  can  be  used  when  every  other  tendril  that 
holds  the  individual  in  touch  with  his  true  nature  has 
been  broken,  we  must  recognize  the  fact  that  it  has  en- 
tered human  nature  as  a  counteracting  influence  to  the 
destructive  errors  that  have  darkened  it.  Had  man- 
kind developed  naturally  under  the  never  failing  guid- 
ance of  Higher  Planes  there  would  have  been  no  occa- 
sion in  his  life  for  hope.  The  nature  of  hope  is  to  pre- 
suppose the  possibility  of  evil  which  may  be  averted. 
Such  a  conception  could  not  have  entered  the  human 
consciousness  if  the  laws  of  nature  had  never  been 
broken.     Human  life  would  have  developed  as  the  flow- 


182  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

er  unfolds.     In  it  no  evil  could  have  intruded,  and  there 
would  have  been  no  need  to  hope  for  better  things. 

Throughout  the  complications  there  has  descended 
from  one  age  to  another  something  that  resembles  a 
memory  of  the  state  when  all  of  life's  operations  were 
with  a  view  to  the  ennobling  of  the  individual  and  the 
furthering  of  his  welfare.  This  memory  is  what  is 
known  as  hope. 

Hope  is  largely  centered  in  many  things  that  have 
only  temporal  value,  and  even  in  the  gratification  of 
desires  and  selfishness,  still  its  nature,  especially  in 
reference  to  its  persistency,  lends  to  humanity  a  buoy- 
ancy which  greatly  aids  to  keep  it  from  sinking  into 
greater  darkness  and  despair. 

So  long  as  the  individual  lives  on  the  plane  of  desire, 
hope  must  survive  the  dissatisfaction  resulting  from 
repeated  disappointment  and  failure,  or  from  satiation 
through  gratification,  until  the  spirit  is  led,  step  by 
step,  to  see  that  the  ultimatum  of  all  hope  lies  in  purity, 
simplicity  and  obedience  to  nature. 

The  natural  qualification  is  faith,  or  an  abiding  trust 
that  all  is  well  because  governed  and  protected  by 
Superlative  Powers  which  fail  not.  In  the  beginning 
man  knew  the  Powers  that  governed  and  protected  his 
life.  He  knew  the  laws  of  nature  and  their  unfailing 
results.  So  long  as  he  was  simple  and  obedient,  all  his 
activities  were  in  accord  with  a  perfect  confidence  that 
his  life  was  governed  to  promote  his  highest  well-being. 
As  by  his  own  indiscretions  he  began  to  be  shadowed, 
and  as  the  shadows  grew  denser,  the  light  that  was  still 


HOPE  183 

able  to  penetrate  the  errors  asserting  themselves  in  his 
nature,  took  on  the  coloring  of  his  increasing  impurities, 
and  his  operations  and  their  results  became  correspond- 
ingly mixed.  In  this  state  was  bom  the  opposites,  — 
good  and  evil— and  the  long  conflict  began.  One  of 
the  first  costs  paid  by  erring  humanity  was  the  sweet, 
peace-preserving  faith  in  the  happy  fruition  of  life  and 
its  activities. 

The  quality  that  is  claimed  and  felt  by  many  people, 
called  faith  in  God,  is  an  abstract  idea  based  on  widely 
divergent  theories  which  have  been  accumulated  as  the 
race  has  passed  through  the  different  stages  of  intellec- 
tual development.  If  faith  is  not  born  of  a  clear  under- 
standing of  unvarying  and  irrefutable  truths,  it  neces- 
sarily degenerates  into  a  pretense  or  counterfeit  emo- 
tion with  no  other  foundation  than  shifting  beliefs. 

In  regard  to  temporal  affairs,  under  certain  circum- 
stances man  has  retained  something  of  the  unmixed 
quality  of  faith,  while  he  has  lost  it  as  applied  to  his 
highest  well-being.  Faith,  as  applied  to  people  or 
agencies  that  have  been  tested  and  found  trustworthy, 
inasmuch  as  it  is  based  on  knowledge,  partakes  of  the 
natural  attribute. 

Humanity  should  so  live  that  the  faith  arising  from 
proven  fidelity  or  verity  could  extend  to  life  as  a  whole 
and  all  its  operations  and  results.  Under  existing  cir- 
cumstances this  is  impossible,  but,  because  of  hope, 
individuals  may  accomplish  much. 

Were  it  not  for  the  survival  of  hope,  in  many  in- 
stances, by  the  time  the  individual  had  suffered  enough 


184  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

to  make  him  willing  and  obedient  to  the  laws  that  oper- 
ate for  his  good,  there  would  remain  no  incentive  for 
effort.  In  fact,  hope  is  the  motive  power  of  all  effort. 
It  is  the  attribute  which,  remaining  as  the  shadow  of  a 
memory  of  a  lost  state,  becomes  the  stepping-stone  to 
the  awakening  of  the  spirit.  Out  of  the  awakening 
shall  inevitably  grow  an  abiding  faith  in  the  Powers 
which  operate  through  nature  to  bless  the  pure  life  and 
lead  along  the  path  of  unbroken  progression  to  higher 
and  higher  states  of  nobility  and  happiness. 


INSTRUCTION  XXXIV 


PATIENCE  AND   ENDURANCE 


n^HE  spiritual  attitude  necessary  to  the  aspirant  in 
the  life  of  progression  is  one  of  keen  sensibility  and 
enduring,  unwavering,  calm,  sweetness,  contentment 
and  happiness.  Only  when  the  spirit  is  peaceful,  pure, 
satisfied  and  glad  can  it  awaken  to  the  higher  states  of 
consciousness,  and  the  growth  of  the  whole  organism 
be  assured.  In  order  that  growth  shall  be  perpetual 
this  attitude  must  be  maintained  without  reference  to 
circumstances  or  conditions.  In  the  midst  of  surround- 
ing inharmony  the  progressive  spirit  must  preserve  its 
calm.  Though  fraught  with  trial,  it  must  still  be  sweet. 
Though  faced  with  deprivation,  it  must  be  content. 
Though  surrounded  by  sorrow,  it  must  be  happy. 

The  world  is  full  of  densest  sin,  and  life  is  teeming 
with  misery.  None  who  live  on  the  earth  can  wholly 
escape  its  nefarious  conditions.  The  only  way  to  wade 
through  its  mire  without  sinking  therein  or  being  per- 
manently sullied  is  by  responding  only  when  duty  calls, 
and  by  preventing  the  interests  from  centering  at  any 
point  that  is  not  directed  toward  the  higher  life.  Even 
when  this  is  done,  to  navigate  these  stormy  waters  with 


186  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

any  degree  of  safety  one  must  ^ard  the  attitude  com- 
prised of  calm,  sweetness,  contentment  and  happiness, 
and  a  consciousness  that  is  alive  and  awake— sls  is  pro- 
tected the  rarest  jewel. 

A  nature  that  has  become  disinterested  in  worldly 
considerations  ;  that  vibrates  only  in  response  to  duty  ; 
that  is  alive  and  awake  to  necessities ;  that  is  serene 
and  peaceful  under  any  pressure ;  that  is  sweet,  satis- 
fied and  happy  in  any  environment,  presents  an  invul- 
nerable front  to  evil,  behind  which  the  individual  is 
lifted  into  a  state  that  is  always  illumined  by  stream- 
ers of  light  from  Higher  Planes.  Thus  surrounded,  one 
may  operate  and  be  blessed  even  on  this  benighted 
globe. 

The  weaknesses  in  your  own  nature  you  have  power 
to  conquer,  but  the  evils  of  the  world  are  beyond  your 
jurisdiction,  save  where,  by  self  purification,  your  light 
may  shine  to  help  others  less  awake  to  see  the  right 
path.  But  the  progressive  spirit,  in  helping  others,  must 
exercise  great  care  that,  by  so  doing,  his  own  light  is 
not  dimmed.  In  the  strength  of  his  untouched  attitude 
lies  his  protection. 

The  relation  that  patience  and  endurance  hold  to 
the  Life  of  Progression  may  thus  be  seen.  Without 
untiring  patience  and  unending  endurance  you  will  fal- 
ter on  the  way.  With  the  aid  of  these  inestimable  at- 
tributes you  may  forge  through  all  obstructions  that 
would  debar  development  to  higher  states. 

When  considering  the  necessity  of  exercising  patience 
and  its  stronger  complement,  endurance,  one  is  apt  to 


PATIENCE  AND   ENDURANCE  187 

contemplate  the  greater  obstacles  and  to  forget  the 
trivial  annoyances  which  beset  the  daily  life.  Stum- 
bling over  petty  offences  by  allowing  them  to  repeatedly 
stir  the  mind  into  little  bubbles  of  irritation  does  as 
much  to  undermine  the  nature  as  the  failure  to  sur- 
mount greater  errors.  Through  continuous  failure  to 
patiently  endure  little  disturbances,  life  forces  are  scat- 
tered and  the  whole  physical,  mental  and  spiritual  or- 
ganism is  depleted.  In  this  way  one  becomes  totally 
unfitted  to  cope  with  severer  trials,  and  for  such  trials 
one  should  always  be  prepared.  If  the  disposition  be 
carefully  watched  and  the  lesser  discrepancies  eradica- 
ted, force  and  power  will,  day  by  day,  be  added  with 
which  to  meet  and  rise  superior  to  any  emergency. 

Whatever  the  necessities  of  your  life,  and  whatever 
your  tribulations,  small  or  great,  remember  that  un- 
wavering patience,  and  endurance  unto  the  end,  of  ne- 
cessity will  fortify  the  character  with  increased  strength 
toward  the  final  mastery  of  earth  conditions. 


INSTRUCTION    XXXV 

FORBEARANCE  AND   FORGIVENESS 

PATIENCE  and  endurance  find  their  counterpart  in 
forbearance  and  forgiveness,  the  latter  attributes 
differing  only  with  reference  to  their  special  application 
to  individuals.  Forbearance  and  forgiveness  are  included 
in  patience  and  endurance.  If  one  has  learned  the  for- 
mer lesson  he  must  have  learned  the  latter  also.  If  one 
is  patient  and  enduring,  his  forbearance  with  the  weak- 
nesses of  others  is  already  established,  and  forgiveness 
of  wrongs  committed  follows  in  natural  sequence.  En- 
durance is  patience  indefinitely  extended,  and  forbear- 
ance holds  the  same  relation  to  forgiveness.  Forgive- 
ness and  forbearance  are  both  phases  of  endurance,  and 
all  are  possible  because  of  patience. 

Some  of  the  higher  attributes  belong  primarily  to  the 
spirit,  and  some  have  been  introduced  as  helpers  toward 
its  extrication.  A  calm,  undisturbed  willingness  to 
await  coming  events  in  their  right  time  and  place  is  the 
quality  of  patience  that  originally  characterized  human 
nature.  The  necessity  of  extending  patience  to  grope 
with  growing  evils  gave  rise  to  the  qualifications  of 
endurance,  forgiveness  and  forbearance. 


FORBEARANCE  AND   FORGIVENESS  189 

Because  of  the  complexity  of  human  errors,  all  laws 
created  for  the  disentanglement  of  the  individual  must 
operate  subject  to  modifications  adjusted  to  varying 
conditions.  Such  laws  and  their  modifications  may  be 
properly  termed  intermediary  agencies,  or  means  to  an 
end.  Their  office,  in  some  instances,  is  to  form  a  con- 
nection between  the  natural  state  and  the  darkened 
condition  of  involved  human  nature.  They  also  indicate 
the  correct  attitude  for  the  progressive  spirit  to  assume 
toward  evils  over  which  he  has  no  control  beyond  the 
point  where  he  is  obliged  to  personally  contact  them. 
The  relation  of  hope  and  faith,  and  the  relation  existing 
between  patience  and  the  three  outgrowing  attributes, 
—endurance,  forgiveness  and  forbearance — form  exam- 
ples of  these  interposing  agencies. 

The  nature  must  be  capable  of  the  attributes  of  pa- 
tience, endurance,  forbearance  and  forgiveness  to  an 
unlimited  degree  ;  but  this  does  not  mean  that  endur- 
ance and  forbearance  are  to  be  used  without  wisdom  or 
discrimination.  Both  these  attributes  should  be  wisely 
modified  to  apply  to  the  circumstances  of  the  hour  in 
such  a  way  as  to  promote  the  highest  well-being  of  all 
concerned. 

To  be  enduring  does  not  mean  to  allow  imposition. 
Endurance  must  be  modified  by  the  law  of  non-interfer- 
ence. (See  Instruction  XX. )  You  should  never  endure 
unnecessary  trespassing  on  your  territory,  and  your 
territory  embraces  your  spiritual,  mental  and  physical 
organisms  and  the  environment  of  each.  Repel  intru- 
sion, but  in  repelling  never  lose  your  patience.     Calm, 


190  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

sweet,  serene,  contented  and  happy,  alive  and  wide- 
awake is  the  unalterable  attitude  whatever  the  exigen- 
cies of  the  occasion,  and  whatever  action  is  necessary 
to  cope  with  them. 

While  patience  has  no  justifiable  limit,  no  evil  that 
can  be  cured  without  cost  to  the  higher  nature  should 
ever  be  endured.  When  you  are  so  conditioned  that 
endurance  becomes  necessary,  we  must  again  remind 
you  to  be  sure  that  it  serves  to  strengthen  character. 

Forbearance  should  never  be  carried  to  the  point  of 
indulgence.  If,  through  the  exercise  of  forbearance, 
you  find  you  are  fostering  an  indulgent  nature,  forbear- 
ance should  give  place  to  whatever  action  duty  de- 
mands. Duty  should  be  governed  according  to  circum- 
stances, and  under  the  guidance  of  wisdom  which  al- 
ways operates  for  the  highest  good  of  all  concerned.  So 
long  as  evil  natures  endure,  so  long  as  the  individual 
is  caught  bound  and  subjected  to  habits  and  passions 
which  enthrall  him  and  rob  him  of  his  self-possession, 
forgiveness  must  repeat  itself.  Whenever  the  nature 
is  penitent  it  must  be  given  another  opportunity. 
Uniorgiveness  can  never  be  vindicated  whether  the 
wrong  doer  is  penitent  or  not.  Unforgiveness  is  born 
of  a  deep  sense  of  injury,  which  is  usually  brooded  over 
and  always  excused  in  the  mind  of  the  one  thus  indulg- 
ing. It  is  a  sort  of  solace  for  self-pity,  and  has  no 
place  in  the  Progressive  Life.  One  who  has  risen  never 
allows  the  wrong  doing  of  others  to  influence  his  nature 
in  the  least  degree.  You  have  nothing  to  do  with 
any  evil  directed    toward  you,   other  than  to  protect 


FORBEARANCE  AND   FORGIVENESS  191 

yourself  to  the  best  of  your  ability  and  in  whatever  way 
the  occasion  demands,  and  to  preserve  your  attitude 
from  being  disturbed.  However  often  one  asks  your 
forgiveness,  it  must  be  granted— in  fact,  make  no  rec- 
ord of  wrong  doing  in  reference  to  personal  feeling. 
Forgive  and  forget  the  offences  of  others. 

Through  inharmonious  conditions  or  tribulations ; 
through  sunshine  or  shadow ;  through  the  right  or 
wrong  doing  of  others ;  through  justice  or  injustice ; 
through  fair  weather  or  storms ;  through  sickness, 
through  suffering,  through  death,  keep  your  nature 
calm,  sweet,  serene,  fully  conscious,  contented  and  happy. 


INSTRUCTION  XXXVI 

GENEROSITY,    CHARITY  AND    GOOD-WILL 

npHE  generosity  of  nature  expresses  itself  in  every  de- 
-^  partment  of  life,  and  is  limited  only  where  man  has 
stifled  it  by  his  selfishness.  The  fruitfulness  of  the 
earth  is  unbounded  in  its  variety  and  abundance.  Of 
every  kind  there  is  ample  for  the  sustenance  of  all  forms 
of  life.  For  every  demand  that  nature  makes,  she 
yields  a  corresponding  supply.  Had  the  human  race 
remained  true  to  itself  want  would  have  been  unknown. 

Through  man's  selfishness,  as  through  no  other 
agency,  the  founts  of  nature  have  been  dammed  and 
their  flow  diverted  from  the  fulfilment  of  universal  need 
to  the  gratification  of  individual  desires.  Notwithstand- 
ing the  operation  of  selfishness,  in  corralling  nature  to 
gratify  desire,  so  prolific  is  nature  in  its  bounty  that  even 
desires  might  be  fulfilled  and  normal  needs  still  fed  did 
selfishness  not  lose  itself  in  greed  and  the  gorging  of 
greed  not  run  into  madness. 

The  thing  that  makes  angels  weep  for  hum.anity  is 
that  its  errors  have  grown  to  such  gigantic  proportions 
that  they  stand  like  hideous  monsters  seeking  whom 
they  may  devour.  All  those  who  are  suflSciently  awake 
to  realize  the  awful  truth  of  this  statement  cannot  too 


GENEROSITY,    CHARITY  AND  GOOD-WILL  193 

quickly  check  from  their  natures  all  phases  of  evil 
which  hold  them  on  the  plane  where  these  destructive 
forces  operate. 

When  we  speak  of  the  plane  of  the  destructive  forces 
we  do  not  refer  to  the  earth  or  material  plane,  as  has 
been  heretofore  described.  Belonging  to  the  earth  there 
are  many  grades  or  states  of  development,  and  each 
grade  is  governed  by  certain  forces,  subject  to  which 
all  on  that  plane  must  operate.  The  standard  of  your 
nature  marks  the  plane  to  which  you  belong.  Ambi- 
tion, selfishness,  desire,  or  any  of  their  phases  or  off- 
shoots, hold  you  on  the  plane  where  operate  the  vilest 
passions  of  human  life,  and  you  are  subservient  to  the 
forces  that  govern  them.  These  forces  operate  to  de- 
stroy. Destruction  is  their  only  purpose;  their  only  ac- 
tivity; their  only  culmination.  The  less  guilty  and  the 
more  guilty  alike  are  caught  in  the  maelstrom  and  car- 
ried on  the  breast  of  this  resistless  tide. 

We  are  not  speaking  figuratively,  but  of  the  most  real 
and  most  familiar  state  on  earth  today.  Nearly  all  of  the 
human  family  are  operating  on  this  plane,  and  even  a 
child  need  but  look  about  him  to  see  that  destruction  is 
being  wrought  on  every  side.  The  earth,  or  physical 
plane,  because  of  man's  degradation,  has  become  almost 
wholly  subject  to  this  low  plane  and  its  destructive  ele- 
ments. For  this  reason  the  physical  cannot  be  wholly 
ifnmune  from  its  influence,  even  when  occupied  by  a 
spirit  that  has  risen.  Beyond  using  all  possible  means 
to  insure  physical  health  and  protection,  let  the  purpose 
of  life  be  to  lift  the  nature  to  a  state  superior  to  the 


194  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

operations  of  the  destructive  forces.  The  body  may  not 
always  escape,  but  the  soul  and  spirit  may  safely  func- 
tion beyond  the  reach  of  evil.  Furthermore,  when  the 
nature  is  pure,  and  the  spirit  awakens  to  the  conscious- 
ness of  the  Planes  of  Light,  many  ways  may  be  seen  and 
used  to  help  and  protect  the  body,  which  to  a  darkened 
spirit  could  not  be  revealed. 

While  the  original  human  nature  was  characterized  by 
the  same  generous  spirit  that  nature  in  all  directions, 
manifests,  there  is  a  far  greater  need  today  to  exercise 
generosity,  charity  and  good-will  than  at  any  time  when 
selfishness  and  good-will  were  less  extreme.  The 
greater  greed  grows,  and  the  more  menacing  malice 
becomes,  the  more  demand  there  is  for  the  operation  of 
the  opposing  attributes  on  behalf  of  their  victims. 

Whatever  can  be  done  should  be  done  both  indi\ddu- 
ally  and  collectively  to  relieve  human  suffering— except 
when  such  help  is  used  to  more  deeply  involve  the  spirit 
in  sin  and  darkness.  With  few  exceptions  suffering  is 
the  only  thing  that  will  awaken  the  spirit  to  its  mis- 
takes, or  make  it  willing  to  correct  them.  The  people 
of  the  world  are  so  hypnotized  through  their  indulgence 
that,  though  brutal  blows  fall  thick  and  fast,  they  still 
continue  in  their  delusion,  and  account  for  their  condi- 
tion in  every  way  save  the  one  which  points  to  their 
personal  responsibility  and  hence  leads  to  their  libera- 
tion. All  sorts  of  remedies  are  resorted  to  to  bolster 
up  a  defective  nature.  Various  phases  of  religion  and 
philosophy    are  promulgated  which   promise  solace  or 


GENEROSITY,    CHARITY  AND   GOOD-WILL  195 

release,  but,  when  they  are  examined,  it  is  seen  they 
all  soften  precepts  by  justifying  indulgence. 

The  truest  and  most  far-reaching  generosity  is  that 
which  helps  one  to  help  himself.  The  only  effectual 
help  that  can  be  given  humanity  is  that  which  comes  as 
a  result  of  ennobling  life.  If  the  individual  would  con- 
quer his  destructive  nature,  his  possibilities  for  becom- 
ing able,  and  living  a  beautiful  and  happy  life  are 
almost  unlimited.  When  one  has  been  taught  and  giv- 
en ample  opportunity  to  build  his  character  to  the  re- 
quired standard,  and  he  refuses,  it  is  then  neither  wise 
nor  right  that  the  life  forces  and  time  of  those  who  have 
risen  be  given  to  his  temporal  aid  at  the  expense  of  his 
higher  development.  The  more  comfortable  is  an  in- 
dulgent life,  the  more  will  the  individual  vindicate  his 
state,  and  thereby  sink  deeper  and  deeper  under  delu- 
sion and  degradation.  It  is  not  generous  to  allay  the 
suffering  that  comes  because  of  the  persistency  in  an 
indulgent  life. 

The  charities  that  go  on  among  the  people  of  the 
world— though  they  never  reach  the  cause,  scarcely  touch 
the  need,  and  at  best  afford  but  temporary  relief —should 
not  be  discouraged,  because  they  do  a  little  to  alleviate 
extreme  conditions  that  would  otherwise  be  hopeless. 
The  spark  of  generosity  is  also  in  this  way  fanned  and 
kept  from  wholly  succumbing  to  the  cold  breath  of 
greed. 

The  spirit  of  generosity  should  be  cultivated,  and, 
wherever  possible,  its  activity  and  expression  should  be 
encouraged.     It  is  the  antidote  for  the  selfishness  that 


196  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

is  devouring  the  human  race.  The  progressive  spirit 
must  be  generous,  not  only  in  the  greater  things,  but  in 
the  Httle  affairs  of  the  daily  life.  Do  not  hesitate  to 
give  your  time,  your  ability  and  your  substance,  when- 
ever you  are  able,  and  wherever  it  will  be  a  help  and  a 
blessing  to  others.  Giving  to  others,  serving  others, 
blessing  others  will  enlarge  and  enrich  your  own  nature, 
and  this  spirit  is  absolutely  essential  to  progression. 
Be  generous,  as  well  as  just,  in  all  your  feelings,  in  all 
your  acts  and  associations.  When  selfishness  is  weighed 
in  the  balance  with  a  liberal  thought,  word  or  deed, 
always  let  generosity  tip  the  scale.  This  means  to  view 
all  things  from  all  sides— to  be  comprehensive  and  to 
withhold  judgment.  It  means  no  criticism,  no  con- 
dem. nation,  and  kindliness  toward  all.  It  means  no 
petty,  trivial  considerations,  desires  and  offences.  It 
means  breadth  and  depth  of  character— an  ennobled 
individuality. 

While  evil  is  deserving  of  condemnation,  it  must 
arouse  no  disturbance  in  one's  own  nature,  nor  ill  will 
toward  either  the  individual  or  humanity  at  large. 
Universal  good-will  should  imbue  and  permeate  all  hu- 
m_an  nature,  and  the  one  who  wishes  to  progress  must 
take  great  care  to  cultivate  this  feeling  tow^ard  all 
forms  of  life. 

As  selfishness  is  overcome,  and  one  rises  above  petty, 
personal  interests,  good-will  spontaneously  springs  up 
in  the  nature  and  becomes  a  fixed  attribute. 

Generosity,  charity  and  good-will  act  on  the  charac- 
ter as  sunlight,  moisture  and  fresh  air  on  the  plant, 
helping  it  to  unfold  and  to  blossom. 


INSTRUCTION  XXXVII 

MEEKNESS,    SUBMISSIVENESS  AND  OBEDIENCE 

TF  there  is  one  attribute  more  valuable  than  another 
-*-  to  the  promotion  of  the  higher  well-being  it  is 
meekness  of  spirit. 

Because  humility  is  so  necessary  to  natural  growth  it 
receives  little  respect  from  the  world.  That  which 
is  valued  by  the  world  must  foster  the  artificial,  not  the 
natural. 

The  nature  that  does  not  hesitate  to  condescend  to 
the  least  is  the  greatest.  One  who  performs  the  lowest 
service  faithfully  fits  himself  for  greater  and  still 
greater  responsibilities.  There  is  no  stumbling  block 
so  fatal  to  growth  as  self-importance. 

One  who  is  proud  is  not  trustworthy,  and  the  arro- 
gant must  be  brought  low  ere  progression  can  begin. 

Meekness  is  especially  valuable  because  it  leads  the 
spirit  to  be  submissive  to  helpfulness.  Without  sub- 
missiveness  and  obedience  the  darkened  spirit  cannot 
rise  out  of  its  gloom.  One  who  is  educated  by  the 
world  finds  obedience  a  most  difficult  lesson  to  learn. 
One  who  lives  close  to  nature  through  obedience  receives 
the  greatest  blessings.      Through   obedience  the  indi- 


198  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

vidual  becomes  valuable  both  to  his  fellow  men  and  to 
the  Planes  of  Light. 

Through  meekness,  submissiveness  and  obedience  one 
becomes  an  active  agent  for  good.  Whatever  your  posi- 
tion in  life,  be  humble,  submissive  and  obedient  to 
authority.  Make  necessary  ser\'ice  an  opportunity  to 
gain  ability. 

While  the  world  does  not  respect  or  em.ulate  the  qual- 
ity of  meekness,  when  viewed  in  the  abstract,  he  who 
adds  ability  to  humility  will  be  sought  to  serve  in  the 
best  places. 

If  you  have  placed  yourself  under  the  instruction  of 
a  teacher  for  any  purpose,  and  especially  for  guidance 
from  a  lower  plane  of  life  to  a  higher,  obedience  to 
principles  and  methods  pursued  is  absolutely  necessary. 
If  you  are  not  humble  enough  to  accept  help,  and  sub- 
missive enough  to  obey  commands,  you  have  not  reached 
the  point  where  growth  may  even  begin,  and  the  only 
teacher  whose  time  you  will  not  waste  is  the  lash  of 
the  world. 

That  humility  may  do  its  perfect  work  you  must  be 
alive  and  awake  to  right,  and  on  the  alert  to  see  where 
duty  calls.  Meekness  must  not  serve  as  an  excuse  to 
do  wrong,  nor  submissiveness  as  an  opportunity  through 
which  one  may  be  led  into  an  erroneous  condition. 

If  one  is  active  on  the  physical  plane,  keeping  the 
mind  and  spirit  centered  in  the  body,  fully  conscious  on 
all  three  planes,  alert  to  detect  any  influence  from  the 
lower  planes,   making  clear  divisions   between    right 


MEEKNESS,    SUBMISSIVENESS,    ETC.  199 

and  wrong,  humility,   indispensible  to  growth,  will  also 
do  much  to  brighten  the  path  to  higher  states. 

Meekness  and  obedience  assist  you,  not  only  in  the  per- 
formance of  duties  in  the  world,  and  to  receive  the  best 
helpfulness  from  a  teacher,  but  in  the  degree  that  your 
nature  incorporates  these  attributes  and  you  faithfully 
apply  them  in  the  lesser  things,  you  will  become  trust- 
worthy. Other  requisite  qualifications  being  fulfilled, 
you  will  then  stand  prepared  to  receive  light,  strength 
and  wisdom  from  Higher  Planes.  You  may  thus  be 
taught  higher  lessons ;  guided  to  better  things ;  pro- 
tected from  evil ;  blessed  with  fuller  happiness  ;  endow- 
ed with  abilities  and  equipped  to  serve  in  the  mighty 
army  of  restoration. 


INSTRUCTION    XXXVIII 

LOVE 

f\P  all  the  attributes  preserved  in  human  nature  the 
^-^  quality  of  Love  is  most  misrepresented  and  least 
understood.  When  one  learns  that  love  can  become 
active  only  in  a  spirit  that  is  pure,  and  that  it  is  not 
co-operative  with  the  errors  of  an  artificial  nature,  one 
may  understand  to  what  extent  it  has  been  counterfeited. 

Love  is  the  dynamic  principle  of  life  itself— the  inte- 
rior element  of  the  creative  principle  and  the  central 
fire  of  the  spirit. 

Had  human  nature  remained  true  enough  to  itself  to 
have  permitted  the  development  and  free  activity  of  this 
mighty  force,  all  humanity  would  have  been  vitalized 
and  glorified  by  its  influence,  and  nowhere  would  it  have 
been  lacking.  The  golden  rule  w^ould  have  been  a  natu- 
ral function  of  human  life,  and  peace  and  happiness  and 
good-will  would  have  breathed  in  every  soul. 

As  desires  and  selfishness  colored  the  nature,  and 
their  long  train  of  evils  crow^ded  in,  the  fires  of  love 
were  smothered,  and  only  a  spark  has  remained  to  cast 
its  faint  glow  through  the  darkness.  The  divinest  prin- 
ciple of  both  earth  and  heaven  has  been  trailed  through 
the  mire  of  the  lowest  passions  that  debauch  the  human 
race. 


LOVE  201 

Notwithstanding  all  the  evils  that  have  surrounded 
and  stifled  human  love,  its  fires  have  never  been  wholly 
quenched  in  the  spirit  of  man.  For  this  reason,  dis- 
satisfied natures  delude  themselves  by  grasping  coun- 
terfeit emotions  to  fill  the  void  felt  by  the  spirit 
whose  love  nature  is  not  dead,  but  submerged.  That 
love  has  never  been  quite  lost  to  the  spirit  has  preserved 
man  from  utter  desolation.  By  its  remaining  warmth 
hope  has  lived— hope  which  leads  to  light  and  faith. 

With  rare  exceptions,  pure  love  is  not  known  on  the 
earth  today.  The  feelings,  emotions  and  attachments 
masquerading  as  love  are  but  effects  of  the  contact  of 
like  elements  drawn  together  by  the  force  of  the  law  of 
attraction. 

The  laws  of  nature  repeat  themselves  on  every  plane. 
The  differences  arise  from  the  modifying  circumstances 
of  the  plane  on  which  they  operate,  and  from  the  adjust- 
ment of  the  laws  to  their  various  connections.  The  law 
of  attraction,  recognized  throughout  the  physical  plane, 
known  by  many  names,  such  as  gravitation,  cohesion, 
chemical  affinity,  capillary  attraction,  magnetism,  etc., 
extends  itself  to  all  forms  of  life,  not  excluding  the  hu- 
man family.  When  perfectly  operating  among  individ- 
uals—though not  generally  acknowledged— the  law  of 
attraction  is  none  the  less  properly  named  the  law  of 
spiritual  aflfinity. 

When  there  is  a  preponderance  of  elements  in  one 
object  over  the  same  kind  of  elements  in  another  object 
—if  the  objects  are  placed  in  juxtaposition,  and  provid- 
ing the  other  elements  of  which   the  objects  are  com- 


202  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

posed  are  so  arranged  as  not  to  interfere — the  law  of 
attraction  operates  to  unite  like  elements,  and  the 
objects  are  drawn  together.  When  this  occurs  because 
of  the  excess  of  quantity  and  force  of  the  elements  in 
each  object  over  the  same  kind  of  elements  in  the  other, 
opposites  are  said  to  attract.  This  is  justified  only  by 
appearances — the  attraction  is  between  elements  of  a 
like  nature. 

If  this  law  and  its  application  is  understood,  the  shift- 
ings  and  inconsistencies  of  what  is  known  as  human 
love  will  all  be  explained.  Not  only  is  the  human  being 
subject  to  this  law,  but  it  operates  on  all  three  planes 
of  his  organism,  the  physical,  mental  and  spiritual.  In- 
dividuals may  be  drawn  together  through  the  physical 
alone,  through  the  mental  alone,  or  only  through  the 
spiritual.  Various  combinations  among  the  three  may 
also  be  formed  through  which  people  are  attracted, 

When  union  takes  place  through  only  the  senses  or 
physical  organism  the  vilest  passions  of  perverted  nature 
counterfeit  love,  and  are  soon  expended  in  satiated 
desire.  From  this  state,  under  the  pressure  of  the 
accompanying  passions  of  anger,  jealousy  and  hatred,, 
it  is  an  easy  step  to  tragedy  and  crime. 

Unions  formed  through  mental  attraction,  or  attrac- 
tion of  minds  of  like  character,  are  less  destructive  ;  but 
such  contact  does  not  awaken  love.  It  gives  rise  to  an 
attachment  born  only  of  the  gratification  of  blended 
intellectual  tastes  and  qualifications.  No  union  can  be 
blessed  with  pure  love  that  is  influenced  by  either  sen- 
sual or  intellectual  gratification.     Indulgence  of  desires 


LOVE  203 

on  any  plane  is  a  contravention  of  natural  law  and  must 
result  detrimentally.  Those  who  are  attracted  through 
their  spiritual  natures  do  not  necessarily  love.  They 
may  be  kindred  spirits  on  a  low  plane,  but  love  cannot 
live  in  other  than  a  pure  atmosphere.  Whether  the 
emotion  felt  by  like  spirits  is  pure  love  or  not  depends 
upon  their  standard. 

Individuals  may  be  united  through  the  harmonious 
blending  of  the  physical,  mental  and  spiritual  natures, 
and  even  then  know  nothing  higher  than  a  set  of  emo- 
tions generated  through  the  contact  of  like  elements. 

By  these  exam.ples  one  may  readily  see  how  the  law 
of  attraction,  operating  under  various  superficial  influ- 
ences and  associations,  may  draw  together  all  kinds  of 
people.  Many  combinations  are  thus  formed  which  by 
their  veiy  nature  must  be  inharmonious,  inconsistent 
and  temporary. 

Not  only  are  the  emotions  between  the  sexes  usually 
nothing  more  exalted  than  chemical  affinity  or  magnet- 
ism on  another  plane,  but  the  attachm.ents  between 
parents  and  their  children,  and  among  all  sorts  of 
earthly  relationships  where  love  is  said  to  exist,  are  for 
the  most  part  formed  of  far  baser  metal  than  the  gold 
of  pure  love.  Almost  all  parental  love,  which  is  con- 
sidered the  highest  type  of  earthly  love,  is  selfish  and 
binding  to  the  child,  while  filial  love  is  equally  selfish 
and  exacting.  When  criticism,  condemnation,  selfish- 
ness and  general  inharmony  characterize  family  life, 
the  attachments  are  little  more  than  fleshly  ties. 

If  desire,   jealousy  or  any   form  of  selfishness  sur- 


204  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

rounds  or  colors  the  feelings  called  love,  know  that  they 
mark  an  attachment  of  a  much  lower  order.  If  one 
grieves  for  the  loss  of  a  loved  one  his  love  is  selfish. 

When  there  is  a  bond  between  two  people,  and  a 
necessary  separation  ensues,  grief  on  the  part  of  either 
one  darkens  and  blinds  both.  When  death  comes,  sor- 
rowing relatives  and  friends  hold  the  spirit  earth-bound 
and  in  the  condition  of  suffering  and  darkness  that 
belongs  to  this  plane.  Love  is  absolutely  unselfish,  and 
never  binds  its  object.  If  one's  love  is  pure,  one  will 
release  the  selfish  ties  that  bind,  and  give  his  loved  one,, 
whether  on  the  earth  or  having  passed  beyond,  freedom 
to  go  and  come  in  response  to  duty  or  in  pursuit  of  his 
higher  well  being,  or  to  advance  as  nature  guides. 

The  nature  of  love  is  to  give  and  to  bless,  as  the  sun 
gives  its  light  and  the  flowers  their  perfume,  and  it 
does  not  demand  or  require  anything  in  return.  When 
this  test  is  applied  to  the  various  emotions  of  human 
nature  called  love  it  becomes  apparent  that  we  have  not 
been  too  severe  in  our  analysis. 

Because  of  the  manifold  activities  of  the  law  of 
attraction  on  planes  other  than  the  highest,  the  pro- 
gressive spirit  must  protect  himself  froni  its  influence. 
One  who  is  developing  should  neither  attract  nor  be 
attracted.  This  is  another  way  of  saying — do  not  allow 
your  interests  to  become  involved.  Keep  your  self- 
interest  free,  care-free  and  desire-free.  As  you  live 
close  within  nature's  requirements,  doing  duty  and 
increasing  ability,  that  which  belongs  to  you,  small  or 
great,  will  tend  to  gravitate  toward  you  unless  interfered 


LOVE  205 

with.  In  the  case  of  an  intervening-  influence  apply  the 
law  of  non-interference— demand  what  is  right,  and 
clear  your  territory  from  intrusion. 

As  the  spirit  conquers  its  weaknesses,  meets  the 
requirements  for  progression  and  returns  to  its  pure 
nature,  love,  fanned  by  the  breath  of  purity,  awakens 
and  flames  into  being-.  The  life  that  is  lived  in  accord 
with  the  whole  law,  and  which  embodies  all  the  other 
attributes,  fruits  in  love ;  love  is  the  fruition  of  the 
purified  nature.  When  individuals,  who  have  thus 
risen,  come  together  and  their  pure  elements  contact 
through  the  law  of  spiritual  affinity,  love  becomes 
active,  and,  true  to  its  nature,  radiates  of  itself  and 
blesses  whom.soever  it  touches. 

Pure  love  responds  only  to  the  union  of  spirits  that 
are  characterized  by  the  higher  attributes,  and  their 
capabilities  of  pure  love  are  measured  by  the  degree  in 
which  the  lower  elements  have  been  misplaced  by  the 
nobler  qualifications.  Inharmony  results  from  a  con- 
flict of  elements  governed  by  selfish,  crude  and  uncon- 
trolled natures.  When  individuals  unite  through  the 
blending  of  spirits  that  are  unselfish,  self-possessed  and 
pure,  the  mental  and  physical  organisms  are  subjected 
and  harmonized. 

The  enmities,  the  inharmonies,  the  abnormal  condi- 
tions, expressing  themselves  in  the  bodies,  in  the  minds 
and  in  the  natures  of  the  members  of  many  families, 
are  largely  due  to  inherited  ills  from  parents,  who  have 
united  through  the  misapplication  of  the  law  of  attrac- 
tion.    The  law  of  spiritual  affinity,  uninterfered  with. 


206  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

will  operate  to  attract  individuals  whose  united  elements 
will  promote  the  highest  well-being  of  both  parents  and 
offspring.  The  sexes  should  never  unite  except  under 
the  perfect  working  of  this  law,  and  with  the  object  of 
producing  and  promoting  higher  types  of  life. 

We  wish  to  impress  the  mind  with  the  fact  that  the 
law  of  spiritual  affinity  cannot  have  its  perfect  way 
until  individuals  have  lifted  their  natures  from  the 
plane  of  selfishness  and  desire,  and  the  spiritual  natures 
have  become  pure  enough  and  vital  enough  to  govern 
the  whole  organism  and  overcome  attraction  on  any 
other  plane. 

When  individuals  unite  under  the  perfect  working  of 
this  law,  love  seals  the  union  with  a  bond  that  endures 
not  only  during  earth  life  but  through  eternity. 


INSTRUCTION  XXXIX 


SYMPATHY 


SYMPATHY,  used  in  the  sense  of  sorrowing  with 
others,  is  not  permissible  in  the  Progressive  Life. 
It  may  be  exercised  in  appreciation  of  another's  suffer- 
ing, but  should  be  used  only  in  conjunction  with  help- 
ful ministration.  One's  sympathies  should  never  be 
enlisted  to  the  point  of  disturbing  one's  own  equilibrium. 
When  sympathy  disturbs  it  weakens,  and  that  which 
weakens  tends  to  destroy.  Through  weeping  with  or 
for  another  you  increase  his  suffering  and  unfit  your- 
self for  helpfulness.  Remember  that  no  circumstance 
justifies  a  disturbed  attitude.  Be  always  calm,  sweet, 
serene,  alive  and  tvi de-awake,  contented  and  happy. 

Sympathy,  in  its  higher  sense,  is  a  subtle  faculty 
through  which  one  readily  comprehends  and  appreci- 
ates the  finer,  higher  sensibilities  of  others,  and  through 
which  one's  own  are  in  turn  comprehended  and  appre- 
ciated. It  is  the  invariable  accompaniment  of  pure 
love,  and  lends  a  sweetness  and  joy  to  human  relation- 
ships paralleled  by  no  other  qualification. 


INSTRUCTION    XL 


KINDNESS 


T7'  INDNESS,  operating  under  the  light  of  love,  and 
-^^  guided  by  wisdom,  may  take  many  forms.  That 
quality  which  acts  according  to  individual  caprice, 
independent  of  either  love  or  wisdom,  is  not  kindness, 
but  a  mere  imitation  which  often  does  more  harm  than 
good.  Only  one  who  is  obedient  to  the  Planes  of  Light 
can  always  know  how  to  be  truly  kind.  To  gratify  an 
indulgent  nature  is  not  kind.  That  which  aids  the  spirit 
to  rise  above  desire,  or  rid  itself  of  weaknesses,  is  truly 
benevolent. 

The  idea,  so  currently  expounded,  that  love  leads  the 
way  to  a  higher  life,  and  that,  to  right  and  purity,  love 
will  open  the  doors  even  of  a  nature  which  has  closed 
them  by  the  densest  forms  of  evil,  is  only  one  of  the 
fallacies  that  divert  the  minds  of  the  people  into  wrong 
channels  and  keep  them  revohdng  in  their  unconquered 
errors.  Love  is  never  the  harbinger  of  the  law,  but 
follows  in  its  wake.  It  is  true  that  every  teacher  or 
reformer  should  have  risen  to  the  plane  of  love.  It  is 
also  true  that  kindness,  governed  by  wisdom,  should  be 
the  motive  power.     Wisdom,  however,  may  demand  the 


KINDNESS  209 

greatest  severity  in  the  handling-  of  an  evil  nature,  and 
the  only  kind  method  is  the  one  that  effectually  conquers 
the  evil  and  leaves  the  individual  free.  Methods  may 
sometimes  be  mild  and  gentle,  and  still  be  effectual,  but 
there  are  occasions  when  necessity  demands  drastic 
measures.  Whether  gentle  or  loving  methods  will  lead 
the  spirit  forward,  or  not,  depends  upon  the  extent  of 
its  involvement  and  its  subm.issiveness  and  obedience  to 
guidance.  Where  right  and  justice  are  submerged, 
kindness  will  not  avail,  and  love  may  stand  and  beat  in 
vain  at  the  door  of  a  nature  that  is  governed  by  selfish- 
ness. Under  such  conditions  the  sword  must  be  used, 
and  love  is  not  the  sword,  but  the  motive  power  behind 
it,  and  the  balm  that  heals  the  wound.  Whatever  resists 
the  law  of  right  will  smother  love,  and  one  who  tries  to 
use  love's  methods  indiscriminately,  in  evil  conditions, 
will  find  himself  like  a  child  beating  flames  with  a  toy. 
To  be  kind  is  first  to  be  just,  and  demand  justice — to 
do  right,  and  demand  right  in  return.  To  be  kind  is  to 
be  merciful,  charitable  and  generous,  whenever  occasion 
permits  without  cost  to  the  higher  nature.  To  be  kind 
is  to  bless  where  such  blessings  enrich  the  soul  and  lead 
the  spirit  toward  the  light.  Let  all  who  would  grow  be 
kind  in  nature,  in  consciousness,  in  speech,  in  acts, 
as  opportunity  permits,  as  love  prompts  and  wisdom 
guides. 


INSTRUCTION    XLI 

TENDERNESS 

rpENDERNESS  is  the  touch  of  angels  on  Planes  of 
Light.  It  is  too  frail,  too  delicate,  too  divine  to 
fully  blossom  in  a  shadowed  world.  For  this  reason,  of 
all  the  attributes,  it  is  least  expressed.  Through  mother 
love  it  is  best  preserved,  and  where  love  is  purest  it  is 
most  manifest.  That  which  is  sweetest,  purest  and 
most  guileless  calls  into  play  the  tender  nature. 

In  the  place  where  purified  natures  shall  unfold  and 
find  fruition  in  pure  love,  there,  under  the  light  of 
Higher  Planes,  will  the  founts  of  tenderness  be  uncov- 
ered, and  flow  to  bless  and  enrich  the  lives  of  all. 
Awakened  spirits  shall  thus  unite  in  true  companionship 
and  common  service  for  the  restoration  of  mankind. 


INSTRUCTION  XLII 


ABILITY 


A     GREAT  spirit  is  an  able  one. 
-^^    Ability  to  cope  with  and  handle  the  conditions  of 
all  the  planes  with  which  the  spirit  comes  in  contact  is 
absolutely  necessary  to  the  development  of  an  exalted 
individuality. 

For  present  purposes  we  shall  confine  ourselves  to  the 
discussion  of  this  subject  in  its  relation  to  the  earth 
plane.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  earth  or 
material  plane  includes  the  physical,  mental  and  spir- 
itual organisms  and  their  relations.  One's  capabilities 
should  extend  over  the  whole  territory. 

Natural  growth  means  an  equalized  development  of 
the  whole  human  organism  and  versatility  of  action 
within  the  confines  of  the  laws  that  limit  it. 

The  value  of  useful  activity  is  paramount.  No  one 
has  any  excuse  for  spending  his  time  in  any  other  way. 
Idle,  purposeless  passing  of  time  is  destructive  and 
criminal.  It  is  destructive  because  idleness  means 
stagnation.  Stagnation  is  contrary  to  nature  and 
insures  degeneracy.     One  who  lives  an  idle  life  is  irre- 


212  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

sistbly  drawn  into  the  current  of  destructive  forces, 
and  his  nature  is  thereby  prepared  for  all  sorts  of 
fungus  accretions  in  the  shape  of  habits  and  passions. 

No  proverb  extant  is  truer  or  more  worthy  of  regard 
than  the  familiar  saying  "The  devil  finds  work  for  idle 
hands."  If  you  wish  to  avoid  being  a  prey  to  the  evil 
forces  and  influences  always  circulating  throughout  the 
world  look  to  it  that  your  days  are  usefully  employed. 
That  idleness  is  self  destructive— spirit,  mind  and  body 
—is  almost  too  apparent  to  need  comment,  yet  in  cer- 
tain walks  of  life  this  most  reprehensible,  inexcusable 
state  represents  the  acme  of  ambition.  A  spirit  that 
has  no  incentive  in  useful  action  becom.es  dulled,  insen- 
sible, darkened,  A  miind  that  is  not  purposefully 
employed  by  a  keenly  conscious  spirit  becomes  delusive, 
stupid  or  erratic,  just  as  surely  as  an  inactive  body 
becomes  sluggish  in  its  vital  processes,  and  all  these 
conditions  mean  daily  death.  The  less  active  a  person 
is  the  more  difficult  does  exertion  become,  and  degener- 
ation into  a  lazy,  slothful,  lethargic  state  is  an  easy 
step.  Such  a  state  is  more  resistant  to  the  light  from 
Higher  Planes  than  the  stone  walls  of  a  cavern  to  the 
light  of  day. 

To  say  that  the  idle  are  criminal  is  not  an  exaggera- 
ted expression.  Whenever  a  good  thing  is  carried  to  an 
extreme  it  operates  detrimentally.  Work  is  absolutely 
essential  to  physical  health  and  strength,  to  mental 
vigor  and  a  beautiful  nature  ;  but  overwork— work  that 
becomes  a  strain  on  any  part  of  the  organism— neces- 
sarily retards  growth  and  becomes  destructive.     Each 


ABILITY  213 

person  who  lives  an  idle  life  does  so  at  the  expense  of 
someone  else— he  causes  someone  else  to  overwork. 
Even  under  the  most  normal  conditions  there  would  be 
justly  proportioned  useful  employment  for  all,  and  as 
the  world  now  stands  there  is  more  than  enough  neces- 
sary work— when  physical,  mental  and  spiritual  needs 
are  considered— to  keep  all  beneficially  occupied.  It 
follows  then  that  the  idleness  of  each  one,  thus  indulg- 
ing-, not  only  forces  another  to  do  a  double  amount  of 
labor,  but  into  excesses  which  are  varied  and  indefinite, 
according  to  modifying  circumstances.  The  workers  of 
the  world  must  do,  not  only  the  necessary  work  of  the 
drones,  but  all  that  is  attendant  upon  the  gratification 
of  inordinately  indulgent  lives.  The  life  forces  of  the 
one  who  is  thus  forced  into  overwork  are  unavoidably 
consumed  faster  than  he  can  gather  them. ;  his  whole 
organism  is  depleted  and  destruction  is  imminent.  In 
view  of  these  facts,  it  must  become  apparent  to  any  fair 
minded  person,  that  idleness  can  be  placed  under  no 
milder  head  than  crime. 

If  one  lives  and  operates  in  conformity  with  nature's 
regulations,  as  one  develops  the  ability  of  the  physical 
organism,  the  intelligence  is  enlarged,  and  valuable, 
accurate  knowledge  increased.  The  spiritual  nature 
will  also  be  correspondingly  beautified.  Naturally  ac- 
quired ability  is  the  key  note  of  well-rounded  individu- 
ality. To  naturally  gain  ability  means  to  use  the  senses 
to  aid  one  in  doing  whatever  comes  to  hand.  All  kinds 
of  necessary  work  are  worth  while,  and  one  kind  is  just 
as  good  as  another.     You  should   have  no  choice  of 


214  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

work,  but  be  governed  entirely  by  duty,  or  what 
seems  best  and  right  under  existing  circumstances. 
What  kind  of  work  you  do  is  not  important,  but  your 
attitude  toward  it  and  the  way  you  do  it  cannot  be  over- 
estimated. However  or  wherever  you  are  employed,  do 
your  work  to  the  best  of  your  ability,  and  if  your  abil- 
ity is  not  equal  to  the  best  requisite  standard  of  efficiency, 
lose  no  time  or  effort  in  becoming  fully  able  to  cope  with 
the  situation.  Let  your  attitude  be  "  I  am  able  ; "  to  that 
attitude  add  energy  and  strict  attention,  and  you  will 
accomplish  much  in  leveling  difficulties. 

Perfection  on  any  plane  should  be  your  goal,  and  all 
your  activities  should  converge  to  that  end.  Not  only 
should  fundamentals  and  correct  methods  be  observed 
in  carrying  forth  any  work  to  completion,  but  finish 
must  also  be  given  its  due  place.  Finish  is  just  as 
important  as  any  other  part  of  the  operation.  Comple- 
tion means  finish  ;  and  no  work,  however  well  begun,  is 
completed  unless  it  has  the  finish  which  belongs  to  its 
peculiar  construction. 

The  precious  stone,  however  symetrical  its  cutting 
and  shaping,  would  be  dull  and  uninteresting  were  it 
not  for  the  polish  that  brings  out  its  color  and  brilliancy. 

The  fine  lines  of  finish  given  by  the  sculptor's  hand 
impart  life  and  expression  to  his  statue. 

The  Hghts  and  shades  on  the  mountain  enhance  its 
rugged  beauty,  and  the  bloom  on  the  rosy  cheeked 
peach  completes  its  perfection. 

Gentle  manners,  thoughtful  actions  and  kindly  ex- 
pressions give  finish  to  a  noble  character. 


ABILITY  215 


The  practice  of  carefully  finishing  all  kinds  of  work, 
simple  or  complex,  will  help  to  develop  qualities  indis- 
pensible  to  your  own  nature.  Finishing  touches,  where- 
€ver  applied,  mean  intelligent  attention,  carefulness 
and  accuracy.  In  order  for  these  qualities  to  become 
active,  the  spirit  must  be  centered  in  the  body,  alive 
and  awake  and  self  possessed.  In  the  degree  that  your 
work  engages  your  attention  will  it  be  well  done,  will 
your  abilities  grow,  and  will  you  receive  general  benefit. 
Dislike  toward  your  work  should  never  be  permitted. 
It  engenders  irritability,  annoyance  and  discontent ; 
thereby  setting  up  disturbing  mental  vibrations  and 
scattering  life  forces.  Whatever  the  nature  of  your 
employment,  make  it  assist  to  develop  ability  along  that 
particular  line.  Do  not  waste  your  valuable  time  and 
forces  in  rebelling  against  anything  which  you  find 
necessary  to  do.  Much  fatigue  attendant  upon  labor 
comxes  not  because  of  physical  activity,  but  because  the 
life  forces  are  w^asted  through  scattering  thoughts  and 
feelings  while  the  body  is  mechanically  occupied. 

The  spirit  and  the  mind  are  inseparable.  As  the  mind 
becomes  irritated,  discontented,  or  for  any  reason  wan- 
ders away  from  the  body,  the  spirit  is  thus  withdrawn. 
When  the  spirit— the  vital  protective  center  about  which 
the  life  forces  concentrate — is  more  or  less  absent,  the 
body's  attractive  power  is  lessened  and  its  \dtality  de- 
pleted. Dissatisfied,  disgruntled,  irritable  and  absent- 
minded  people  are  almost  sure  to  have  mediocre  ability, 
and  they  unavoidably  squander  strength  and  vitality. 
Those  who  are  centered  in  the  body,  alive  and  aivake. 


216  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 


calm,  sweet,  serene,  contented  and  happy,  through  all 
their  activities,  increase  their  ability,  vitality  and  endur- 
ance. There  is  no  way  by  which  the  body  may  be 
strengthened,  the  senses  quickened,  the  intelligence 
awakened  and  the  spirit  illumined,  so  well  as  by  a  cor- 
rect attitude  and  the  united  action  of  body  and  mind. 
The  special  business  of  the  progressive  spirit  is  to  do 
useful  work  here  on  the  earth,  in  the  body,  through  the 
senses  and  faculties,  which  should  always  assist  the 
mind.  The  mind,  under  the  conscious  control  of  the 
spirit,  should  direct  the  whole  operation. 

Abihty  on  any  plane  and  under  any  circumstances  is 
an  inseparable,  augmenting  and  resulting  factor  of  pro- 
gression. It  is  doubly  indispensible  to  one  who  is  plod- 
ding through  the  difficulties  of  earth's  present  state. 
The  only  way  to  meet  an  obstacle  is  as  an  opportunity 
for  increasing  ability  through  overcoming  the  obstacle. 

V/hen  light  is  used  to  blind  the  higher  perceptions 
and  to  promote  darkness,  when  intelligence  is  sacrificed 
to  intellectual  accumulations,  and  ability  is  dedicated  to 
greed  and  sensuality ;  when  light,  knowledge  and  power 
are  transfigured  into  shrewdness,  cunning  and  trickery, 
the  honest,  just  and  right-abiding  indi\adual  must  in- 
crease his  skill  to  cope  with  the  situation.  This  means 
that  he  must  reach  a  point  where  ability  plus  honesty, 
plus  uprightness,  plus  purity  of  purpose  can  successfully 
compete  with  ability  plus  selfishness,  plus  craftiness, 
plus  dishonesty. 

What  the  respective  footings  of  these  problems  shall 
be— which  shall  ultimately  prove  its  superior  strength 


ABILITY  217 

and  power— remains  to  be  demonstrated  as  the  g-reat 
fight  between  good  and  evil  proceeds,  and  it  depends 
upon  how  many  awaken  and  enlist  with  the  forces  of 
light  marshaled  on  the  one  side,  against  the  forces  of 
darkness,  manifold,  but  disorganized,  on  the  other. 

Health  and  strength  of  body,  keen  intelligence,  accu- 
rate knowledge,  broad  comprehension,  force  and  purity 
of  character  in  active  co-operation,  constitute  the  re- 
quirements of  one  who  hopes  to  conquer  in  defiance  of 
all  obstructions. 

Whether  the  outlook,  individually  or  collectively,  au- 
gurs defeat  or  promises  victory,  ABILITY  is  the  slogan 
of  all  those  who  unite  in  the  mighty  cause  of  progression. 


INSTRUCTION  XLIII 
nature's  beneficence  to  the  self-possessed 

T1[7E  deem  it  a  fitting  close  to  our  analysis  of  the 
requirements  and  attributes  of  progression  to 
bring  before  the  mind  of  the  reader  a  sort  of  summary 
of  the  endowments  and  possibilities  of  the  natural  life 
under  the  beneficent  operation  of  the  laws  that  make 
for  man's  highest  well-being. 

We  have  shown  how  nature  promotes  progression  of 
the  human  life,  or,  contravened,  tends  to  destroy.  We 
have  in  more  or  less  detail  pointed  to  the  kindly  provi- 
dence of  nature's  laws,  but  we  shall  herewith  recapitu- 
late, in  order  that  we  may  so  accentuate  this  all-import- 
ant fact  as  to  prevent  any  possibility  of  its  being  over- 
looked. 

Because  man  has  strayed  so  far  from  the  heart  of 
nature,  and  lost  his  way  amid  the  briars  and  brambles 
of  artificiality,  he  looks  about  him  and  says  there  is  no 
beneficent  principle  operating  in  nature  ;  or  he  concludes 
the  ways  of  the  Governing  Intelligence  are  beyond  the 
discernment  of  the  finite  mind.  Thus  he  reconciles 
himself  to  evil. 


nature's  beneficence  219 

The  only  reason  that  the  beneficence  of  nature  is  hid- 
den from  view  is  because  the  spirit  is  too  enveloped  in 
theories,  ideas,  prejudices  and  speculations,  and  too 
darkened  by  desires,  selfishness,  passions  and  habits  to 
see.  With  rare  exceptions  the  individual  is  self  hypno- 
tized, and  blighted  by  the  smoke  of  his  own  errors,  and 
through  their  clouds  the  light  cannot  penetrate. 

With  senses  dulled  by  indulgence,  cognitive  power 
befogged  by  misconceptions,  and  spirit  deadened  by  the 
narcotic  influence  of  the  many  errors  with  which  it  has 
become  identified,  man  presumes  to  judge  of  heaven, 
earth  and  hell— of  nature,  God  and  man,  and  their  rela- 
tionships. As  a  result  is  presented  a  conglomerate, 
confused  and  chaotic  mixture  of  what  is  known  as 
religion,  philosophy,  science,  materialism,  atheism, 
agnosticism,  pessimism,  optimism,  and  states  of  a 
happy-go-lucky-absence-of-all,  with  thousands  of  shades 
and  variations  of  each— no  two  agreeing,  all  conflicting, 
and  each  claiming  to  be  the  best.  All  seeking  power, 
all  justifying  some  forms  of  indulgence,  and  all  tending 
to  keep  humanity  revolving  in  a  whirlpool  of  contradic- 
tions which  daze  it,  delude  it,  rob  it  of  its  life  forces, 
weaken  it  physically,  mentally  and  spiritually,  and 
insure  its  ultimate  degeneracy. 

We  would  not  be  understood  to  say  that  man  has 
arrived  at  no  truth  through  these  various  avenues.  All 
contain  indisputable  facts.  Surrounding  these  facts, 
however,  often  coloring  and  twisting  them  into  innumer- 
able shapes,  and  many  times  torturing  them  past  all 
recognition,    are  all  kinds  of  errors.      Some  are  less 


220  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

destructive,  some  more  destructive,  and  many  pernicious 
and  deadly  in  their  operations  and  results. 

It  is  the  truth  underlying  theories  of  any  kind  that 
attracts  the  best  minds.  Not  knowing  the  false  from 
the  true,  the  individual  is  unable  to  segregate,  and 
usually  accepts  or  rejects  the  whole  mixture. 

Are  we,  through  these  instructions,  advancing  another 
theory  through  which  to  still  further  confuse  the 
human  mind?  On  the  contrary,  we  are  referring  you 
to  incontrovertible  laws  of  nature,  their  operation  and 
results.  We  are  showing  you  that  if  you  let  nature 
have  its  perfect  way,  your  mind  will  be  absolutely 
denuded  of  theories,  prejudices,  conclusions,  ideas, 
speculations  and  idle  thoughts  ;  that  you  will  entertain 
and  be  influenced  by  nothing  that  you  do  not  know  ;  and 
that  such  knowledge  must  come  through  your  senses, 
your  faculties  or  your  perceptive  powers.  Is  this 
theory?  We  are  reminding  you  that  your  senses  are 
for  use,  not  abuse,  and  that  use  increases  power.  We 
are  also  reminding  you  that  even  as  the  body  becomes 
weakened  by  constant  action,  the  mind  also  needs  rest. 
Is  this  not  common  sense?  We  have  shown  you  that 
whatever  governs  you  against  your  better  judgment 
robs  you  of  self  control.  This  is  self  evident.  We 
have  accentuated  the  fact  that  a  pure,  noble,  natural, 
useful  life  is  the  happiest  one.  This  is  one  of  the  facts 
that  has  endured  through  the  ages  and  that  no  amount 
of  corruption  has  been  able  to  obliterate. 

We  have  touched  on  the  existence  of  the  Heavenly 
Powers.     This  is  an  eternal  truth,  well  known  and  fully 


nature's  beneficence  221 

demonstrated  to  those  who  have  so  Hved  as  to  under- 
stand the  law  through  which  these  Powers  operate.  If 
the  existence  of  the  Planes  of  Light  is  a  theory  to  you 
it  proves  that  your  mind  is  too  clouded  to  let  the  light 
through,  and  if  you  wish  to  become  conscious,  we 
advise  you  to  clarify  your  mind  according  to  prescribed 
methods. 

The  principles  and  methods  herein  delineated  are  not 
only  demonstrated  facts  which  are  today  being  prac- 
tised, but  they  are,  by  their  very  nature,  self-evident 
and  irrefutable. 

Let  us  once  more  glance  at  nature's  laws  in  their 
application  to  man's  physical  organism.  That  all  forms 
of  life  are  composed  of  life  forces  or  elements  concreted 
through  the  ever  present  law  of  attraction,  and  that  the 
physical  body  is  no  exception  to  the  rule,  no  one  will 
question.  That  every  part  of  the  organism  depends  for 
vitality  upon  these  life  forces  attracted  and  incorpor- 
ated by  the  body,  is  also  authentic.  That  there  is  a 
central  ego  or  a  spirit  in  man,  draped  with  and  depend- 
ent upon  these  same  life  elements,  and  that  these  ele- 
ments form  the  soul,  are  facts  the  denial  of  which  no 
man  can  substantiate.  That  the  spirit  not  only  exists 
but  is  immortal,  is  a  question  that  will  not  down. 
Though  the  spirit  and  its  immortality  has  many  times 
been  buried  under  manifold  theories  and  conclusions,  it 
persistently  resurrects  itself.  Not  only  through  religion 
and  philosophy  is  the  spirit  revived,  but  the  scientific 
mind  is  constantly  searching  its  annals  of  reason  and 
experiment  for  positive  proof  or  disproof  of  this  ques- 


222  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

tion— a  question  which  ever  remains  the  most  vital  and 
interesting  of  any  before  the  human  mind. 

In  order  to  prepare  the  miind  to  understand  how  the 
physical  body  was  originally  included  under  nature's 
providence  we  wish  to  call  your  attention  to  the  follow- 
ing facts :  Though  the  body  has  lost  its  pliability  or 
pure  reflective  quality  in  its  crudeness,  still  it  is  e\adent 
that  the  status  of  the  mental  and  spiritual  organisms 
does  influence  the  physical  to  a  considerable  degree. 
That  fear,  surprise,  or  shock  sends  the  blood  pulsating 
through  the  veins  to  the  head,  or  checks  its  flow,  causing 
one  to  pale  or  flush,  the  heart  to  pulse  rapidly  or  seem 
to  stop,  is  a  fact  within  every  person's  experience. 
That  mental  depression  or  agitation  affects  digestion 
and  assimilation  is  also  generally  recognized.  Various 
experiments  are,  from  tim.e  to  time,  being  made  which 
show  that  anger,  hatred,  irritability,  etc. ,  actually  poison 
the  blood,  and  that  there  is  a  close  connection  between 
the  conditions  of  the  body  and  the  nature  of  the  indi\id- 
ual.  It  necessarily  follows  that  all  weaknesses,  habits 
and  passions,  inasmuch  as  they  disturb  equilibrium  and 
scatter  life  forces,  tend  to  destroy  health. 

These  facts  point  to  the  law  of  nature  that  would 
have  rendered  physical  diseases  and  weaknesses  impos- 
sible. Originally  the  body  of  man  was  not  different 
from,  but  a  part  of,  the  soul — life  forces  held  together 
by  the  force  of  attraction  under  the  control  of  the  spirit. 
Even  as  we  may  understand  that  life  elements  are  light, 
pliable  and  reflective,  so  we  may  comprehend  the  body 
of  the  natural  individual.     Had  man  not  lost  his  state, 


nature's  beneficence  223 

and  introduced  crude  elements  through  defiling-  his 
nature,  the  body  would  have  surrounded,  protected  and 
served  the  spirit,  and  it  v^ould  have  been  strong,  vital, 
responsive,  and  as  free  from  disease  as  the  spirit  was 
pure. 

Through  the  long  process  of  inheriting  crude  elements 
the  body  has  become  the  fixed  and  dense  organism  we 
now  know,  subject  also,  by  inheritance  and  the  force  of 
its  environment,  to  weakness,  disease  and  death.  The 
fact  that  the  body  still  partakes  of  its  original  nature 
accounts  for  its  being  influenced  by  the  spirit  and  its 
activities.  In  view  of  the  fact  that  a  spirit,  purified, 
strong  and  obedient  to  law,  will  do  much  to  restore  a 
depleted  physical  organism  and  preserve  health,  it 
should  also  be  remembered  that  the  atmosphere  of  the 
world  is  dense  and  darkened,  and  at  best  one  is  subject 
to  a  great  complexity  of  destructive  conditions.  As  the 
spirit  refines  the  physical  refines  also  and  becomes  more 
and  more  sensitive  to  conflicting  elements.  In  this  state 
its  protection  lies  in  a  rigid  application  of  the  law. 
This  means  that  the  spirit  must  keep  within  its  own 
territory— refusing  to  attract  or  be  attracted  ;  strictly 
minding  its  own  business  ;  taking  no  interest  save  where 
duty  calls  ;  never  allowing  interest  or  sympathy  to  carry 
it  to  the  point  of  disturbance  ;  preserving  at  all  times  a 
keenly  sensible,  calm,  sweet,  serene,  contented  and  happy 
attitude.  If  this  is  done  the  individual  may  build  about 
him  from  his  own  pure  elements  an  armor  of  protection. 
So  long  as  he  does  not  break  this  armor,  through  somp 


224  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

indiscretion  which  scatters  his  Hfe  forces,  he  may  safely 
function  even  on  darkened  planes. 

There  are  diseases  which  come  entirely  from  physical 
causes.  In  such  cases  the  troubles  should  be  treated  on 
that  plane,  and  the  best  possible  physical  remedies  used 
and  conditions  observed  to  heal  the  patient.  There  are 
also  bodily  sicknesses  that  have  their  origin  on  the 
mental  and  spiritual  planes— the  mental  being  always 
subject  to  the  phyoiea-l.  When  this  is  so  the  diagnosis 
should  be  from  the  spiritual  standpoint,  and  the  cause 
found  and  removed. 

There  are  healing  agencies  on  all  three  planes.  Even 
as  it  is  true  that  means  and  methods  of  healing  on  the 
physical  plane  should  be  applied  by  those  who  have 
knowledge  and  experience,  so  the  forces  of  the  subtler 
planes  should  be  clearly  understood  ere  they  are  tam- 
pered with.  Much  harm  and  destruction  is  today  being 
wrought  through  the  indiscriminate  manipulation  of 
finer  forces  by  people  who  know  nothing  of  their  real 
nature  or  operation.  Every  plane  has  its  own  specific 
forces.  When  one  grasps  any  force  or  set  of  forces  of 
which  he  has  gleaned  a  slight  consciousness,  and  in  his 
ignorance  applies  them,  without  reference  to  law  and 
order,  to  any  and  every  plane  on  which  he  wishes  to 
operate,  he  naturally  gets  mixed  results.  More  than 
this,  such  results  are  ultimately  fatal  to  the  body,  delud- 
ing to  the  mind,  and  most  injurious  to  the  spirit. 

Whenever  one  individual,  silently  operating  through 
the  mental   or  spiritual   organism,  influences  another 


nature's  beneficence  225 

sufficiently  to  get  any  response  or  result,  however  much 
the  appearance  may  be  for  good,  both  have  been  greatly 
harmed.  The  extent  of  the  harm  done  depends  some- 
what upon  the  spiritual  states  of  the  individuals,  and 
upon  their  environment,  but  under  no  circumstances  can 
injurious  results  be  avoided.  When  individuals  enter 
this  sort  of  a  relationship  through  the  rapport  of  their 
finer  organisms,  there  necessarily  ensues  a  mixture  of 
elements — which  is  both  unnatural  and  destructive. 
Each  individual  should  live  and  grow  surrounded  by  his 
own  elements  or  soul,  and  the  importance  of  preserving 
the  soul  sacred  from  intrusion  cannot  be  overestimated. 
When  one  directs  toward  another  a  suggestion  which 
takes  effect,  or  when  one  assumes  a  spiritual  attitude 
forceful  enough  to  affect  the  subject,  and  receives  a 
response  therefrom,  one  has  made  a  rent  in  his  own 
soul,  and  has  sent  his  life  forces  quivering  into  space. 
Some  of  these  forces  penetrate  the  soul  of  the  victim 
toward  whom  they  are  directed,  and  in  turn  make  an 
opening  in  his  sacred  garment  and  scatter  his  life  forces. 
In  this  way  the  spirits  of  both  are  exposed.  Whatever 
disturbs  and  scatters  life  forces  leaves  the  spirit  open  to 
all  the  mixed  evils  and  destructive  elements  with  which 
the  earth  atmosphere  is  constantly  teeming.  When  the 
soul  is  intruded  upon,  as  above  described,  it  directly 
partakes  of  the  impure  elements  of  its  environment, 
and  of  the  intruder,  however  good  his  intentions 
may  be. 

It  is  not  difficult  to  understand   that  the  developing 
embryo  should  be  undisturbed  in  its  protective  chamber. 


226  THE  PROGRESSIVE   LIFE 

and  that  its  seclusion  is  absolutely  necessary,  and  above 
all  sacred — but  the  individual,  deluded  by  little  knowl- 
edge, forces  his  elements  into  other  souls  regardless  of 
the  fact  that  the  spirit  depends  upon  the  undisturbed 
soul  elements  for  life,  light,  sustenance  and  growth,  and 
that  such  intrusion  leaves  the  spirit  ruthlessly  exposed 
and  unprotected. 

There  are  remedial  agencies  on  all  planes,  and  through 
the  manipulation  of  finer  forces  these  agencies  are  some- 
times set  to  work,  and  certain  sicknesses  of  the  body 
may  be  cured.  There  are  many  ways  of  curing  diseases 
which  it  will  not  serve  the  purpose  of  this  set  of  instruc- 
tions to  enter  into,  but  we  wish  to  repeat  that  whenever 
the  above  methods  are  used,  whatever  the  effects  on 
the  body,  they  are  at  best  temporary  and  always  at  the 
tremendous  cost  of  the  soul  and  spiritual  welfare.  One 
who  would  progress  must  keep  himself  free  from  all 
such  interferences. 

As  to  the  health  of  the  body,  let  nature  work,  so  far 
as  possible,  through  fresh  air,  sunshine,  useful  activity, 
suitable  clothing  and  pure,  nourishing  food.  Take  such 
physical  remedies  as  the  occasion  demands.  Above  all 
things  keep  the  spirit  at  home  in  the  body,  and  preserve 
the  attitude— a^-ive,  and  wide-awake,  calm,  sweet,  serene, 
contented  and  happy.  As  you  learn  to  conserve  your 
life  forces  you  will  find  that  your  strength,  vitality  and 
health  will  be  improved  and  preserved. 

We  now  come  to  the  mental  organism  and  its  natural 
gifts.  It  will  hardly  be  necessary  to  make  more  than  a 
passing  reference  to  the  fact  that  humanity  is  flounder- 


nature's  beneficence  227 

ing  in  ignorance  of  many  vital  truths,  and  that  many 
people  are  in  a  state  of  constant  research,  inquisitiveness 
and  experimentation.  It  was  not  nature's  intent  to 
withhold  from  her  children  her  now  unfathomed  depths. 
This  is  demonstrated  by  the  fact  that  one  who  has  even 
in  a  degree  purified  his  nature  receives  light  by  which 
he  comprehends  laws  that  lead  to  the  unveiling  of  fur- 
ther truths.  As  one  developes  naturally,  his  intelligence 
becomes  more  and  more  comprehensive  until  he  clearly 
sees  and  knows  all  the  facts  necessary  to  preserve  and 
bless  his  present  state,  and  all  that  lead  to  Higher 
Planes  and  to  their  attendant  revelations. 

Not  only  is  nature  provident  of  man's  highest  well- 
being  on  the  physical  and  mental  planes,  but  every 
higher  attribute  of  the  spirit  it  is  her  purpose  to  exalt 
to  its  highest  point  and  express  in  its  fulness  through- 
out the  natures  and  lives  of  all.  Peace,  harmony,  sat- 
isfaction, contentment,  intelligence,  wisdom,  compre- 
hension, faith,  strength,  power,  force,  love,  sympathy, 
kindness,  tenderness  and  happiness  are  embodied  in 
pure  nature,  and  by  nature  developed  and  promoted  to 
the  utmost  of  their  possibilities. 

So  unnatural  has  human  life  become  that  hardly  more 
than  a  sham,  or  memory  of  these  characteristics,  is  now 
expressed— even  in  the  places  where  they  are  most 
claimed.  The  peace,  harmony,  satisfaction  and  content- 
ment known  to  the  world  arise  largely  from  the  tem- 
porary adjustment  of  conditions  to  suit  ambition  and 
gratify  desire.  They  take  wings  when  conditions  refuse 
or  cease  to  conform,  and  are  therefore  but  little  more 


228  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

than  the  artificial  counterparts  of  the  deep  and  enduring- 
qualifications  of  the  natural  man. 

Intelligence,  wisdom,  and  comprehension  are,  for  the 
most  part,  counterfeited  by  acquired  knowledge  and 
versatility  of  brain  power,  which  utterly  fail  to  protect 
man  from  his  suffering,  to  guide  him  into  light,  to  teach 
him  the  vital  and  sustaining  facts  of  nature  and  to  bring 
him  happiness. 

Because  man  guesses  at  so  much,  and  actually  knows 
so  little,  thus  having  such  a  poor  foundation  for  its  exer- 
cise, he  has  little  faith. 

Strength,  power  and  force  man  plays  with,  today,  as  a 
child  with  dangerous  weapons — tomorrow  they  hurl  him 
prostrate  at  their  feet. 

A  world  that  holds  the  golden  rule  as  an  impracticable 
and  impossible  ideal  can  scarcely  claim  to  have  kissed 
the  hems  of  the  garments  worn  by  love,  kindness,  sym- 
pathy and  tenderness,  and  the  happiness  the  world 
knows,  for  the  most  part,  is  but  temporary  exhileration. 
Had  man  not  distorted  nature  from  her  very  roots,  and 
bent  her  branches  into  channels  crooked  and  foul,  these 
qualities  would  have  fully  blossomed  on  the  tree  of  life 
and  fruited  for  its  exaltation. 

A  tree  that  is  diseased  and  bears  no  fruit  is  by  nature 
cursed.  If  the  higher  attributes  and  qualifications,  in 
all  their  purest  and  divinest  aspects,  are  the  natural 
fruits  of  the  natural  life,  then  is  the  artificial  life,  which 
characterizes  the  world,  a  barren  tree  diseased  and 
cursed.  Is  a  selfish,  desirous,  sensual,  licentious,  indul- 
gent, curious,  critical,  condemnatory,  irritable,  angry. 


nature's  beneficence  229 

revengeful,  jealous,  envious,  contentious,  suspicious, 
lazy,  peevish,  melancholy,  reckless,  destructive,  and 
with  all,  a  proud  and  self-important  human  nature  not 
diseased?  Are  sickness,  deformity,  delusion,  ignorance, 
imbecility,  madness,  crime,  poverty,  sorrow  and  death 
not  accursed  products  of  a  diseased  state?  Is  it  not 
true  that  nearly  every  human  being,  however  respect- 
able, moral,  religious  or  philosophic,  is  guilty  of  not  one 
but  many  of  the  weaknesses  of  perverted  nature,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  masses  that  are  so  submerged  as  to  be  a 
constant  menace  to  society? 

We  are  not  painting  the  picture  too  dark.  No  mature 
mind  can  but  admit  that  the  wickedness  of  the  world 
beggars  all  possible  description,  and  the  goodness  of  the 
world  falls  far  below  the  standard  of  a  human  nature  in 
which  there  are  no  passions,  no  habits,  no  prejudices,  no 
falsities,  no  conceptions,  no  petty,  nor  impure  emotions, 
no  indulgence,  no  fears,  no  sorrowing  and  no  weak- 
nesses. 

We  do  not  wish  to  be  understood  to  imply  that  there  is 
no  good  left  in  human  nature.  No,  life  is  full  of  hope;  and 
our  sole  purpose  is  to  awaken  the  individual  to  his  tre- 
mendous possibilities. 

The  spirit  of  man  sleeps.  The  mighty  powers  of  Higher 
Planes  combine  with  those  of  earth  to  awaken  humanity 
—a  humanity  for  the  progression  of  which  all  nature's 
laws  co-operate :  —  a  humanity  whose  capabilities  are 
almost  infinite.  Loved  and  cherished  by  the  Planes  of 
Light,  there  is  no  sacrifice  too  great  which  shall  serve 
toward  the  final  restoration  of  the  human  race.      In 


230  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

pursuance  of  this  purpose,  the  work  of  the  mighty  forces 
thus  engaged  shall  find  expression  in  many  ways  and  in 
many  places. 

There  are  many  beautiful  characters  scattered  over 
the  earth  who  are  making  an  earnest  effort  to  live 
according  to  the  highest  precepts,  and  who  are  doing 
noble  and  effectual  service  for  the  betterment  of  human 
life.  There  are  still  others  who,  through  their  suffer- 
ings and  awakenings,  are  being  rapidly  prepared  to 
enter  and  to  live  the  pure  life.  They  are  by  nature 
great,  and  capable  of  the  highest.  To  all  such  may 
the  message  of  this  book  go  speedily  forth.  May  their 
needs  be  fully  met,  and  may  they  be  guided  into  the  full 
light  which  shines  on  the  path  of  progression. 


INSTRUCTION    XLIV 


'         RESUME 


T^HE  fundamental  laws  of  nature  are  the  law  of 
equilibrium  and  the  law  of  attraction. 

All  the  rules  of  action  embodied  in  this  philosophy  are 
tributary  or  subordinate  to  and  in  accord  with  these  two 
great  underlying  laws. 

The  laws  of  equilibrium  and  attraction  are  applicable 
on  the  physical,  mental  and  spiritual  planes.  On  each 
plane,  under  each  law,  there  are  subordinate  and  tribu- 
tary laws. 

Under  the  law  of  equilibrium  on  the  physical  plane 
are  mechanical  forces— static. 

On  the  mental  plane  are  mental  forces— quiescent. 

On  the  spiritual  plane  is  the  spirit— calm,  still. 

Under  the  head  of  the  law  of  attraction  on  the 
physical  plane  are  gravity,  cohesion,  adhesion,  chem- 
ical affinity,  magnetism,  etc. 

On  the  mental  plane  are  agreement,  harmony  of  con- 
sciousness, concord  of  thought. 

On  the  spiritual  plane  are  affinity— love. 

The  most   potent  attractive   force  of  nature  on  any 


232  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

plane  is  light.     To  the  attractive  power  of  light  all 
growth  on  any  plane  is  directly  or  indirectly  due. 

On  all  planes  nature  persistently  tends  toward  equi- 
librium. 

On  all  planes  the  law  of  attraction  is  equally  persis- 
tent and  operative. 

The  activity  caused  by  attraction  disturbing  equilib- 
rium, and  nature's  effort  to  restore  balance,  results  in 
the  law  of  action  and  reaction,  which  is  equal  to 
mechanical,  mental  and  spiritual  forces— dynamic. 

As  attraction  and  the  tendency  toward  equilibrium 
are  omnipresent  and  persistent  in  nature,  so  the  result- 
ant law  of  action  and  reaction  operates  universally. 

Man's  intervention  between  his  own  life  and  the 
laws  of  nature  cannot  destroy  or  check  the  action  of 
nature's  laws,  but  he  interferes  with  them,  deflects  their 
course,  nullifies  their  purpose  and  receives  antithetical 
results. 

Progression  on  the  spiritual  plane  is  the  resultant  of 
nature's  tendency  to  preserve  equilibrium  under  the 
stress  of  the  attractive  power  of  light.  On  other  planes 
there  is  similar  activity  resulting  in  growth. 

Sin  is  the  departure  from  the  path  prescribed  by 
nature.  If  the  errors  of  human  nature  are  examined, 
it  will  be  seen  that  their  iniquity  lies  in  their  departure 
from— or  their  interference  with— equilibrium  and 
attraction.  For  example  :  desire,  the  first  sin,  is  harm- 
ful in  its  action  because  it  sets  up  i  counter  attractive 
force  to  that  of  the  light. 

The  light,  in  this  sense,  is  the  spiritual  vibratory 


RESUME  23:3 

force  generated  by  and  radiated  from  the  composite  of 
attributes  comprised  in  an  exalted  individuality. 

The  nature  of  desire  is  to  attract  the  individual  and 
the  thing  desired  toward  each  other.  Desire  deflects 
the  course  of  the  spirit  from  its  natural  trend  toward 
the  light  to  multitudinous  objects  belonging  to  the 
lesser,  denser,  darker  planes.  On  the  plane  where  man 
gratifies  desire  there  is  no  equilibrium.  All  things  are 
artificial  and  out  of  balance.  Still  the  tendency  toward 
equilibrium  persists,  and  as  a  result  of  the  perversion 
of  this  law  there  is  a  settling  into  sense  gratification. 
This  is  the  satisfaction  felt  on  low  planes.  The  cor- 
ruption of  equipoise  also  results  in  idleness,  indolence 
and  sloth,  all  of  which  are  antagonistic  to  the  balanced 
calm  that  belongs  to  growth.  These  are  rather  the 
states  of  stagnation  attendant  upon  decay. 

Low  planes  are  teeming  with  deflected  forces  and 
their  results— all  in  conflict  and  confusion.  To  live  on 
the  plane  of  desire  means  to  be  subject  to  these  forces- 
chactic.  In  connection  with  what  we  have  previously 
written  on  the  subject  of  desire  its  exact  action  and  the 
primal  seat  of  its  subversive  nature  may  be  seen. 

Whatever  errors  are  considered,  it  will  be  found  that 
they  are  tributary  to— or  forms  of— desire.  Their 
action  is  to  deflect  natural  attraction  and  unnaturally 
disturb  equilibrium.  Ambition,  selflshness,  covetous- 
ness,  jealousy,  envy,  inquisitiveness  and  curiosity  are 
forms  of  desire,  and  prevent  aspiration.  Aspiration  is 
the  natural  trend  of  being  toward  the  light.  Pride, 
vanity,  irritability,  hatred,  anger,  revenge,  destructive- 


234  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

ness,  recklessness,  sadness,  discontent,  fear  and  criti- 
cism are  tributary  to  desire,  and  represent  the  nature  out 
of  plumb— out  of  balance — equilibrium  destroyed  and 
natural  attraction  checkmated. 

Such  attributes  as  patience,  contentment,  meekness, 
forbearance,  generosity  and  kindness  tend  to  restore 
equilibrium.  They  also  forestall  forces  opposed  to  the 
attraction  of  light. 

Happiness  is  a  dynamic  force  resulting  from  the  yield- 
ing of  the  becalmed,  self-possessed  spirit  to  the  attrac- 
tion of  the  light. 

Thus  we  close  our  rehearsal  of  the  requirements  for 
progression,  or  our  summary  of  the  laws  of  nature 
which  promote  the  welfare  of  those  who,  no  longer  gov- 
erned by  human  ills  or  weaknesses,  become  self- 
possessed. 

One  who  is  self-possessed  nature  guards,  cherishes, 
blesses,  guides  and  endov/s  with  whatever  intelligence 
and  ability  he  needs  for  the  furtherance  of  his  work. 
Nor  does  nature  cease  her  providence  here,  but  carries 
her  self-possessed  child  to  higher  endowments,  increas- 
ing wisdom,  abilities  and  powers,  enriching  her  bless- 
ing of  peace,  harmony,  love  and  joy.  Illumined  under 
the  full  radiance  of  Higher  Powers,  en  rapport  with 
angelic  planes,  equipped  for  ser\dce— such  an  one 
becomes  master  of  earth  conditions.  The  spirit  thus 
prepared,  glorified,  and  embodying  richer  and  nobler 
states  of  individuality,  passes  from  sphere  to  sphere, 
through  a  life  that  ends  not. 


INSTRUCTION  XLV 

A  TRIBUTE  TO  THE   HIGHER  LIFE 

T^TOULD  that  we  might  write  in  letters  of  eternal 
fire  upon  the  tablets  of  man's  soul  something  of 
the  promised  beauty  of  an  unpolluted  life.  Would  that 
by  the  light  of  this  same  fire  he  might  receive  an  un- 
checked flow  of  inspiration  to  crush  life's  thorns  beneath 
his  iron  heel  and  scale  life's  heights  to  realms  of  bliss 
unfathomed. 

0,  dear  ones,  struggling  in  the  mists  below — by  sin, 
sorrow  and  death  environed — look  up,  and  know  that 
life  beyond  these  present  shadows  is  as  sunlight  to  the 
shades  of  night ;  and  not  one  ray,  however  brilliant  its 
effulgence,  but  falls  within  the  radius  of  your  possibility 
to  embrace,  and  to  receive  the  warmth  and  glory  thus 
reflected.  You  have  but  to  choose  the  way,  and  follow 
closely  by  the  light  that  leads  you  thence. 

Gather  the  perfume  of  all  the  blossoms  in  nature's 
fields,  and  you  have  but  breathed  the  sweetness  of  the 
higher  life. 

Listen  to  the  sweetest  notes  of  song  birds,  of  running- 


236  THE  PROGRESSIVE  LIFE 

brooks,  of  bow  and  string,  and  chiming  bells,  and  you 
have  but  the  echo  of  its  harmonies. 

Enter  the  cool  shades  of  a  mountain  forest,  or  drift 
on  the  bosom  of  a  placid  lake,  and  you  have  but  one 
faint  glimmer  of  its  smile  of  peace. 

Center  the  thunders  in  one  mighty  bolt,  and  hear  the 
announcement  of  its  power. 

Catch  the  laughter  of  children,  the  cooing  of  doves, 
and  sparkling  of  dew-drops  kissed  by  the  sun,  and  you 
have  but  suggested  its  joy. 

This,  and  more  than  language  can  portray  or  imagery 
encompass,  awaits  the  one  who  conquers  earth  conditions 
and  forges  through  its  darkness  to  the  planes  of  light. 
From  planes  illumined  shines  the  sun  of  purity,  of  love, 
of  joy  into  the  unspotted  soul.  With  great  ones  he 
holds  true  concourse,  and  sweet  communion  with  angehc 
hosts,  who  lead  him  on,  from  light  to  exaltation,  from 
exaltation  to  sublimity,  in  an  unbroken  progression 
through  the  eternal  realms  of  being. 


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